Rekka no Ken, Kaze no Makoto
by Ray Venn Hakubi
Summary: FE7. A story of friendship, adversity, and the lilies that can blossom along the sides of the path to war. FemTac, contains original research.
1. The Girl from the Plains

**Disclaimer:** Nothing recognisable belongs to the author. It all belongs to Nintendo and Intelligent Systems. Some details may have been changed, but… on the whole, it's theirs. This is to be reproduced only with the author's permission, and may not be used for profit. If it is reproduced, this warning must be at the beginning of each document.

* * *

**Prologue - The Girl from the Plains**

The dark-haired girl groaned slightly as she leaned over the neck of her horse. The animal was barely any better off than she was, certainly on its last legs from exhaustion and malnutrition. Together, they'd been crossing the plains for two weeks now, searching for a place to restock. To rumour, the plains of Sacae were crawling with vicious, warmongering nomads... but so far, they'd seen nothing.

Dusk fell, and the horse finally gave out. The girl stumbled a few steps away with the intent to make camp, but fell a moment later.

* * *

"Oh! You're awake!" 

The cheerful voice made her wince. Opening her eyes a crack, she saw a cacophony of colours swirling over her head. When they didn't resolve themselves after a moment, she turned her head to the side and squinted her eyes at the girl who had spoken. Long, dark green hair tied up in a high ponytail, small bangs falling forward to hide her forehead and slightly longer bangs framing her ears. The hair was tied back with a colourful, woven band in red and yellow. The same pattern marked her collar and the hems of the half-sleeves that covered her biceps. Her strange, blue-green dress was slit up the sides – presumably for ease of movement – and belted across the middle with a red sash.

Grimacing, Rei decided that the colours must by the roof of a tent. The walls - where she could see them through the cross-hatching of a wooden frame – were made of the same cacophony of different pieces of cloth sewn together.

"You must be one of the vicious, warmongering horse-nomads of Sacae..." she groaned, and the girl blinked before chuckling. It was a full, throaty chuckle of the sort most women didn't allow themselves.

"Yes. I'm Lyn, of the Lorca tribe. The chieftain's daughter. You're my guest here." Lyn moved over towards the bed Rei was lying on and knelt beside it, a cup of broth in her hands. "Sit up, you need to eat something. I found you passed out not three miles from here." As Rei forced herself to sit up, she took the bowl from the Sacaean girl and closed her eyes against the heat rising from the bowl, breathing in the fumes for a moment before replying.

"I'm Rei... a traveller. Thank you for your hospitality... Is Petal... is my horse alright? She's sturdy, but I've been pushing her so hard to try and cross the plains..." She opened her eyes – as dark as her hair – and looked at Lyn hopefully.

"She's exhausted, but she'll recover. You'll be ready to move before she is, though. I don't recognise the breed, but she's not suited for travelling the plains. What on earth drove you to take a hoofed sister like that across the plains? I can tell she's better suited for warmer weather and mountains." Lyn was frowning, now. It was as though she cared as much for the horse as the rider, and blamed her for the creature's poor state. Rei supposed she was right – but she couldn't abandon the horse because of something silly like the plains. It was just a place.

"I couldn't just sell her. You called her 'hoofed sister'... I suppose I do think of her like that. She's been with me since I left home... I looked after her as best I could, but equinology isn't my strong suit." Rei finished her soup, then yawned sleepily.

"Even so... oh, I don't know. You looked after her better than you did yourself, so I can't fault you for trying... now, back to sleep. You nearly died of exposure." Rei tried to protest, but felt the wooden bowl being pulled from her gently resisting hands even as she felt herself spiralling back into a dreamless sleep.

The next time she awoke, Lyn was holding her mouth closed to stop her making any sound. Rei came instantly awake at the threat of violence in the air, eyes so brown they were almost black focussing on the Sacaean's face as she held a finger to her lips. Rei nodded, and the hand on her face was lifted. The younger girl leaned in close and spoke in a harsh whisper.

"Outside... bandits. There are three of them. I think I can take them if I'm smart... stay here and don't make any sound."

"No... I'll help. I... I'm not much of a fighter, but I can spot an advantage that a warrior might miss. That's... what I do." Rei replied, her voice wavering at first but becoming more certain as she brought her concentration to bear. As she woke up fully, she realised that it raised some questions that they were worrying about three bandits at all if they were in a tribal camp.

"You're a tactician? I suppose I could use your help... come on, then." Rei nodded, then stood and dressed quickly, pulling on the leather trousers and loose tunic the locals to the north of the plains wore. She'd bought the clothes as soon as she'd been able to – her own travelling robes, rugged as they had seemed at the start of her journey, were totally unsuited for long-term use. "I found these in your cloak... you sure you're not a fighter..?" Lyn was holding several hiltless knives – throwing knives – towards Rei, who nodded and took them after pulling her cloak on around her shoulders. The heavy garment was the one thing she'd saved from her original clothing, since it was ideal for holding the many items she might need to hand in the many pockets that lined the interior. She slipped the knives into sheaths sewn into the cotton lining of the waterproofed wool, then took another three from where they lay on a table. She also took the single hilted knife from beside her boots and strapped the wrist sheath onto her forearm. She hoped she wouldn't have to use the blade – she wasn't very accurate in melee range, and her arm muscles were built for throwing and pulling rather than lunging and parrying. Not that she planned to be fighting at all – that would be Lyn's job. Her preparations complete, Rei moved to the tent door just behind Lyn. The younger woman was about to pull the flap back to exit when it was snatched from her grasp by an axe tearing through the cloth and ripping the 'door' half off. Lyn fell back into Rei, knocking the other woman to the ground but rolled up again instantly. The prone seventeen-year-old stayed down as Lyn leaped forward over her, hand going to the hilt of the single-edged blade at her hip and ripping it from the scabbard, bringing the blade around and up to strike the bandit's wrist, severing the tendons and rendering the hand useless. The sword carried on up and round before coming down on the surprised man's head, splitting his face down the middle and shattering the top of his skull, driving shards of bone into his brain and killing him instantly.

Fighting her heartbeat down, Rei scrambled to her feet and nudged the man slightly, checking for reaction. There was none. He wasn't particularly impressive, ragged tunic hiding decent but not ridiculous muscles. His face hadn't been much to speak of before it had been split, and to be honest the smell was an improvement.

"I don't think the others saw the tent yet... we're hidden behind some rocks. This one must have wandered off. Come on, lets go." The swordswoman led the way out of the tent and to the edge of the rocky outcropping that hid them from view. Rei looked out and saw the bandits. All three were armed with axes - clumsy weapons, but well-suited for dealing with the pikes that most town militia were armed with since the blades could splinter a pike haft easily, rendering the reach weapons useless. On an open plain, the bandits had the advantage of numbers, however, and Lyn didn't seem to be the sort who practiced group-tactics.

"I don't know if I can take them all on, but... lets move in and attack." the Sacaean whispered, but Rei shook her head.

"No. Better to stay here. I'll go out and get their attention - you wait here, ready to take them out as they come round the corner. That was a very nicely done Iai strike, by the way." Rei glanced at Lyn, then noted her blank look. "When you struck with the blade from the scabbard... in my homeland, we call that 'Iaijutsu'. The sheath technique."

"Ah." Was the response. It was clear that while Lyn took her sword work seriously, she hadn't been taught in a style, as was the custom in Rei's homeland but rather a series of techniques that simply worked. "I don't like you putting yourself in danger though... you're still my guest."

"I'll be fine. I can do this - trust me." Rei smiled, then went over the rocks in a flurry of forest-green cloak. Moving around, she waited until she was at the edge of the outcropping before revealing herself with a startled shout, looking as though she'd just come around the rocks. Immediately, all three bandits looked up. The one she took for a leader snarled something unintelligible at the other two, who started jogging towards the rocks with leering grins on their faces. Rei backed away slowly until they were barely ten feet away then turned and ran back around the rocks. Taking one of her throwing knives in hand and concealing the metal tang in her hand, she backed into a corner as the two bandits came around, fixing a frightened look onto her face and raising the knife as though she didn't really know what to do with it.

"S.. stay back. What do you want with me?" She stammered at them, and the one on the left let his leer grow as he spoke.

"Just a little fun, girly. Put the knife down and we won't hurt you - too much." The other laughed, then, but it was cut off with a strangled gasp as Lyn's sword fell from above, cutting into his shoulder and down across his collarbone, slicing through his thick neck as the Sacaean swordswoman landed in a slight crouch behind him. As the second bandit turned to look, Rei flicked her wrist, sending the thin-bladed knife into the side of his sinewy neck. The blade didn't seem to bother him much, though, as he lunged towards the swordmistress with a roar that was sure to bring the leader running. His axe buried itself in the ground as she sidestepped, bringing one booted foot up and round with the motion to slam into his left ear, above and opposite where the knife was buried. Completing the circle, she brought the blade around, up and over until it bit into the back of his neck in a two-handed strike that severed his spine and half removed his head. The shocked look on the heavyset bandit's face as he fell forward defied words.

Just then, the fourth bandit appeared around the rocks, scowling. He was larger than the other two, his longish hair held back from his eyes by a sweatband across his brow.

"Grr... You killed my men. They weren't much to speak of, but still they were MINE! I don't know what sorcery you two little girls used, but now you face Batta, called the beast by those who whisper his name, frightened in the dark."

"I do believe that there has been a misunderstanding here." Rei spoke softly, stepping forward slightly and putting up her harmless look. "We don't want any trouble... please, just leave us be."

"Maybe that way, you won't have to get hurt." Lyn stepped up beside the shorter woman, bloody sword held loosely in her gloved left hand. The gloves were like her boots - strong leather, fingerless and designed for protection against wear rather than the weather. They were rather like her voice - tough and not worth messing with.

"No trouble? Sweetheart... I'm trouble incarnate. Now, get your friend to put the sword down and you won't have to watch me kill her before I take my toll."

"I can't do that... I'm very sorry." Rei looked down with a sigh, sounding very apologetic. "Please, Lyn... don't let him corner you."

With that, Rei stepped back and Lyn grinned, reversing her grip so that the sword was held underhand. Stepping forward with her right foot, she placed her right hand on the hilt of her sword and focussed her gaze on Batta. In return, the bandit growled low and charged forward, his massive axe held low and horizontal to the ground in one hand. As he neared his opponent, he brought the huge weapon up and around in a vicious swing that would surely bisect the young woman... except that the moment before he struck, she tensed and vanished, re-appearing behind him with a tight, grim smile. She darted forward, striking him as she passed, then blurred across to strike again from another position, striking again before the blood from the first strike had fallen, then relocating again for a third strike that cut across his throat before the bewildered bandit could even blink. Even so grievously wounded, bleeding out from his throat, each breath gurgling through the impromptu tracheotomy as his eyes narrowed in rage. Raising the axe, he struck again; his blade ringing off Lyn's as she raised it two-handed in a block. Even so, the force of the parry forced her to one knee as she strained against the massive strength of her foe. The blade of the axe drove down closer, and the sword's blade started to wobbly as Lyn's arms tired under the massive strain she was forced to put them under. Suddenly, the pressure was relieved as Batta stumbled back with a roar of pain, his hand going up to his face - and where a hiltless knife was buried in his eye. Most of the blade still showed - the blade hadn't been able to break through the skull to hit the brain, and was a little too wide to slip up the channel used by the ocular nerve, but it left an opening and blinded the man well enough for Lyn to force herself upright and forward with a yell, blade striking upwards for the heart.

As the blade pierced his vital pump, Rei let go the breath she'd been holding. Finally, the bandit Batta died as Lyn pulled her killing iron free from the wound with a grunt of effort. As she cleaned the blade on a cloth, Rei retrieved her knives from where they still rested in the corpses, cleaning them on the bandits' clothes and secreting them in their sheaths once more. She was careful not to touch the dead flesh - such a thing was frowned upon at home - so it took a little more effort than it might have.

"Are you alright?" She asked, turning to her companion. Lyn was standing over the leader's corpse, scabbarded blade in her hand and staring down at it.

"It's easier than I'd thought it would be..." The swordswoman murmured quietly. "Even though he took so long to die... I thought it would be harder."

"These were your first kills?" Rei responded, slightly surprised. "I would have thought that you would be experienced already, considering the tales of the Sacaean raiders."

"Most of them aren't true. We're a peaceful people mostly... we fight to protect the plains and our people, but we don't go out... attacking people randomly. We aren't bandits." The last was said harshly, as though Lyn had been called such before and suffered for it.

"I didn't mean... I'm sorry, I shouldn't have…" Rei stammered, trying to undo her hurtful words. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have judged you by the stories of frightened peasants."

"No. You shouldn't." Came the short reply. "Lets deal with these. We can't leave them for the vultures. Then you can help me fix the flap on my yurt." There was a patch of forest not far off, so they moved the bodies closer to it. Rei struggled under the weight, but forced herself to manage anyway. If Lyn could do it, so could she. By the time night had fallen, the four bandits were piled together with wood and kindling. As the sun dipped over the horizon, Lyn lit the pyre and muttered what sounded like a prayer before turning away. Seeing Rei's slightly surprised look, she scowled again.

"We respect our enemies as well. We aren't savages." She snapped, and the older girl nodded.

"It is more than we do for ours. If we cannot find where our enemies came from, they are usually left on the field for the crows. A warrior might honour his opponent with a salute, or by taking his sword, but past that..." She shook her head. "No, you have my respect in this. You are perhaps a more honourable people than my own, though ours is a culture hemmed in perception of it." Rei offered a smile, and after a moment, the Sacaean relented her scowl.

"We should head back and get some sleep. I... need to do some thinking." Lyn took one last look at the pyre and moved back to the tent. Rei noted that it was alone among its nest in the rocks. Still, she resolved to say nothing. It might simply be part of Lorca culture to set your tent apart from others of the tribe during times of low danger. Such would explain why they had been forced to deal with the bandits on their own as well.

'If she decides to tell me, she shall do so. Otherwise, 'tis not my business.' she told herself as she followed the younger woman into the tent.

"You can have the quilts again. Where there are some bandits, there may be more, so I'll be sleeping outside with the horses. Besides - it is a nice night. I would suggest you sleep outside also, but you are recovering still. Goodnight." With that, Lyn gathered a pair of blankets and left the tent.


	2. Footsteps of Fate

**Disclaimer:** Nothing recognisable belongs to the author. It all belongs to Nintendo and Intelligent Systems. Some details may have been changed, but… on the whole, it's theirs. This is to be reproduced only with the author's permission, and may not be used for profit. If it is reproduced, this warning must be at the beginning of each document.

* * *

**Chapter 1 - Footsteps of Fate**

"Good morning, Rei." For the third awakening running, the dark-haired tactician opened her eyes to a patchwork ceiling and the somewhat cheery voice of the Lorca chieftain's daughter. "Breakfast?"

"Ah... yes... please. Ahn... do you have my supplies? What was left of them, I mean..." Rei sat up and shifted around to look at the girl through sleep-blearied eyes. At the affirmative, she smiled slightly. "Is there a bag in there with a lot of brown powder?"

"Your tea?" Lyn guessed, but tilted her head when Rei shook her head. "It did smell odd for dried tea."

"Coffee grounds. The wood-spirit's greatest gift as far as this one is concerned." Rei realised that she was mumbling, and rubbed her eyes with the back of her hand in an attempt to clear the sleep from them. It was the first good night's rest she'd had in weeks - Petal was a good watch-horse, but there was always the chance she would fall asleep, and over time even the once soft noble's daughter had learned the career campaigner's ability to wake from sleep to battle-readiness. Now that she felt safe in the confines of Lyn's tent, she realised that she'd fallen back into bad habits. Looking around for a moment as Lyn gathered her breakfast, she realised that she liked the tent.

"Could you put some of the grounds into some hot water? Only a half handful should do both of us..." As she took the bowl of warm porridge, she smiled. "I think I might have to steal your tent when I leave. It's a work of art." Suddenly, she raised a hand to cover her mouth as she yawned, embarrassed.

"Actually..." Lyn sounded uncertain as she measured out the coffee. "Take me with you." The words came out all in a rush, as though the girl wanted to get them all out before she could reconsider. Still, she looked at Rei imploringly.

"I… you... say that again?" Rei blinked, stunned.

"Take me with you. When you leave. I can be useful - you've seen how I can fight, and the roads are dangerous at the moment. Also, I know the plains, so - at least as long as you travel in Sacae, let me come with you?"

Rei looked at the eager girl, weighing her words. She liked her, certainly - travelling with her would be no burden, and if she were entirely honest with herself, she didn't want to part ways so soon. Something drew her to the girl.

"I would love to have you come with me, but... Won't your father object? Surely as the chieftain's daughter, you have duties to your people? Marriage oaths to fulfil?" At the mention of her father, Lyn's face had fallen, but only when the girl looked away at 'oaths' did she realise it was more than just disappointment. "Lyn? What's wrong? "

"My people - The Lorca... They don't... I'm the last. Six months ago, a large group of bandits came down from the Lycian border. They were well armed, and armoured, but... they were definitely bandits. They attacked at night. In the space of a single night... the survivors numbered less than ten, all told. There was nothing I could do..." Her voice cracked, and Rei realised that she had tears running down her cheeks. She wanted to go to her, do something to ease her pain, but could not think what. Lyn raised a hand to wipe away the tears, roughly.

"No. I won't cry any more. Please, Rei.." She looked over at the seated girl once more, resolve replacing sorrow. "I won't achieve anything sitting here alone on the plains. Take me with you - let us learn. I don't know what called you here from your homeland, but I know that you must have come a long way. Let me help in your quest. I don't know what you seek, but your intentions must be honourable."

"Alright... you may join me. I shall tell you of my quest."

"As we move. Come - we must prepare. Everything must be packed away, and the yurt collapsed."

"Ah, no." Rei interrupted, and Lyn blinked at her.

"No?"

"First - coffee." Rei smiled at Lyn, who nodded in understanding. "Do you have cups?" At Lyn's nod, she moved forward and searched her bags for the steel filter. From the look of most of the equipment Lyn had, metal was hard to come by on the plains, and her sword was plain iron. The mesh-like strainer found, she siphoned off the now brown-stained water into the cups.

"Ideally, back on the islands, we would mix milk with the coffee to sweeten and cool it, but since leaving, I've grown to like it black." She passed the first mug to Lyn, then took the second and breathed deeply of the fumes rising off it. She smiled as she saw Lyn copy her, then look startled.

"It smells... interesting." The Sacaean commented, before taking a sip. "It's not as bitter as tea... I think I could grow to like it. We trade with outsiders for tea, but I've never heard them mention this coffee stuff. How do you still have any? I gathered that you'd been on the road for some time."

"One of my teachers was a priest. He made a gift of the bag to me, saying that as long as I had need I would never run out of coffee. Seems that it works on a daily basis - it won't let you take any more until I start craving again this evening."

"This stuff is addictive?" Lyn blinked, then looked at her cup with new wariness.

"Slightly more so than tea. They both have something in them. I think it's the same stuff that helps them wake us up. I wouldn't worry about it if I were you - I've been drinking it since I was seven, and a cup a day usually does me fine." She smiled, and they finished their drinks in silence before rinsing out with what was left of the boiled water and packing everything away. Surprisingly enough to Rei, the Yurt could be collapsed to a single foot-long package. The cloth walls wrapped around the collapsed walls and slipped inside an oiled leather bag. By the time they were ready to leave, they made a neat little convoy with Rei riding her chestnut mare and Lyn leading a pony on her own Warsteed-stock mare.

As they travelled towards the eastern edge of the plains, they talked as Lyn set an easy pace, stopping each night at pre-chosen rest stops that had been used by the Lorca during their annual migration around the north-east section of the plains. It transpired that the Lorca were primarily horse-breeders, trading the culls from their herd, along with handicrafts and herbs for tools, spices and exotic foodstuffs that weren't available to the nomads like bread or fish. It was only on the third day that Lyn, during a period of silence, reminded her companion that she'd promised to share something of her story.

"Hey, Rei... every time I've asked about your homeland or reasons for travelling, you've avoided the question... what drove you to travel so far?"

For a change, the black-haired girl took time to think about her answer.

"I'm looking for someone... is the simplest answer. I suppose that you'd need to understand something of my people to understand why I do this... I come from an island chain to the north of the continent. My people are the Kanhi, which means 'Island-Fire' in the language... though I'm wind attuned. Our culture is organised into castes, each one attuned to an element. People are organised into castes by their individual skills. Traders and thinkers are both wind-attuned. Farmers and miners are earth-attuned. Smiths and warriors are Fire-attuned, and fishermen and diplomats are water-attuned. That's not to say that people only respect the spirits of the element that they are attuned to. A warrior who specialises in archery would make offerings to both the Fire spirits of the smith who forges their arrowheads and the Air spirits of the locale they're going to fight in. Blue-road traders will ask for the blessings of both wind and water, while green-road will ask wind and earth..." she trailed off, pausing and looking into the distance to let Lyn absorb her words. "The one I search for was dual-dedicated, though... he's a skilled warrior, and so attuned to Fire... but he felt his calling to Air. Torn as he was, he left in order to seek his true place in the world... he promised to return, but then... it's been four years." Rei stopped again as she felt her voice starting to break and throat tighten. After a moment, she looked around to see her travelling companion looking at her through sympathetic eyes.

"You must have cared a lot about this person." Lyn spoke softly, but was surprised when the foreigner shook her head vehemently.

"I hate him. I hope I find him dead!" Rei spat the words, as though it were the first time she'd dared to give them voice. "He's a stuck-up, arrogant bastard who wants to ruin my life, and thinks he's helping. Worse, he's got the support of my parents to do it. I'm only here because duty demands I search for him." she bit back a growl, but it was as if a floodgate had opened on suppressed feelings. "Do you know what the last thing he said to me was? He said to me," her voice took on a more masculine tone. "I must leave you to find my balance, but I swear I shall return. When I do, we can be married and I will heal you." She took a deep breath, knuckles white on Petal's reins. "As if he could, or I wanted _him_ to..." a final stress on 'him', then she fell silent, scowling out across the plains. Lyn wanted to ask what it was that her companion needed healing, but took in her mental state and wisely chose to remain silent. It had obviously cost her a lot to say even as much as she had, but knew that letting things out was necessary. Keeping emotions sealed inside was a recipe for disaster, but something that had been suppressed for so long had to be let out a little at a time. She wondered at the society that would allow such things to build to such a point, and the mental fortitude that Rei must have had to suppress her anger for so long.

"How long have you been travelling, then?" she asked, diverting the subject a little. It had the desired effect of jerking Rei out of her growing black mood as the girl looked around again.

"Since six new moons ago I left my father's estate..." she frowned, slightly. "That would be... nearly seven months by your reckoning, since we're in waning now." she paused. "What's that?" she asked, pointing to the horizon.

"You finally noticed, huh?" Lyn grinned at her. "That's Bulgar, the trade-city of Sacae. We're nearly at the edge of the plains. We'll make a stop there, and then at the shrine. In the town, we should be able to buy maps and work out a destination. There must be work somewhere for people with our skills, and that's the best way to improve..."

"Think we'll make it by sundown?" Rei asked. She'd made the mistake of thinking that just because you could see something meant you could get there within the day already, and knew better - especially since it was gone noon already, and the city was only just in sight.

"Probably. No need to rush though." was the reply, and they continued on in silence.

They did indeed reach the town before sunset, though only just. The decision was made to find an inn instead of adding their tent to those of the other travellers. It would be nice to have a bath and not have to worry about setting up or taking down the yurt. Neither, however, was particularly rich, and only Lyn had any of the trademarks used by the Sacaeans. Overall, it worked out that the best way to afford both rooms and the supplies and maps they needed was to get a single room and have Rei sleep on the floor - it was her turn, since she'd had the blankets the night before. It got them a knowing look from the innkeeper, but neither really cared about his assumptions. They used Rei's name, since she was in theory supposed to be leaving an easily traceable trail across the continent for her intended to find. Tired as they were, they ate a quick meal from their supplies and turned in.

"... Lyn?" Rei murmured after about half an hour, and got a sleepy grunt in response. "It's getting cold in here... could I..?" she trailed off, and got another mumbled response. It sounded affirmative, so the Kanhi girl smiled to herself and rolled up off the cloak she was using as a bedroll and slipped onto the bed next to her friend before snuggling into the covers. She fell asleep soon after. Lyn slept on undisturbed.

The next morning, Lyn had blinked at waking up with a girl attached to her, but extracted herself from unconsciously clinging arms without a word and gotten dressed before waking Rei. Since the girl had immediately shifted her grip to the roll of covers she'd left for her companion after stealing half the blankets, the Sacaean decided not to read too much into it. The girl must have been cold, that was all. With a wicked grin, she reached over and yanked the covers away, exposing the sleeping-robe clad girl to the cold air in the room.

"Wake up, Rei!" she said, loudly, and the target of her attack rolled over and cracked a bleary eye open.

"Imp... givvat back Riki..." she muttered, then shook her head as she realised that she didn't recognise the room, and that -

"Wait. Not Riki…" she blinked a couple of times and rubbed the sleep from her eyes. "Lyn... evil."

"Ssh. It's been light for hours, Rei. Definitely time to get up - who's Riki?" Lyn was throwing clothes at Rei after each word.

"My Keeper." she caught the clothing and started to dress, shimmying out of the sleeping robe yet somehow managing to stay completely covered by the clothes she was holding. At Lyn's blank look, she continued; "A keeper is a servant who makes sure that you do everything you need to... um... kind of a cross between a handmaid and a babysitter."

"Servants? I still don't know much about you, do I?" Lyn mused, and Rei responded with a chuckled.

"I guess not... you were the chieftain's daughter. My father was a warlord. Though the Kanhi share a culture, we're separated into prefectures, then prefectures are divided into wards. My father was the warlord of Nadeshiko prefecture, so he could afford to have a Keeper for his daughter. My brother didn't have one - but then, he was always content too keep his own appointments. He had a regular manservant."

"You… weren't content to keep your own appointments?" Lyn guessed. "I thought you were fairly dutiful... otherwise, you wouldn't be here, right?"

"I would have been... I kept most of them, but... I don't _want_ to be raised to end up as a trophy on some other lord's arm to cement an alliance. My father wanted me to be attuned to Water when I came of age, so he did as much as he could to make sure those were the skills I learned. I would be his envoy, he thought, until he found the right man. Then he did find him..." Rei trailed off, and Lyn felt an uncomfortable silence start to build.

"Hey, come on. No time for moping, lets get shopping." Lyn offered her hand, and Rei nodded and grabbed it, allowing herself to be pulled from the room with her pack hanging from one hand. Once they were out, she swung it up and settled it on her shoulders before arranging her cloak over the top. Lyn already had her bag on, but her gloves hung from her belt on the opposite side from her sword. She made no effort to put the thick leather on, instead leading the way out of the inn and into the city.

She hadn't had much chance to look around the night before, so Rei stared in wonder at the city. Unlike most she'd seen, only the core of the city was permanent. Most of the commerce occurred in the expansive tent-city around the mud brick core where traders - both Sacaean and otherwise - gathered to sell their wares to wanderers and each other. Most of the business took place on a barter basis, but here and there trademarks or other currencies - even the odd gold coin - changed hands. As Lyn approached one of the food sellers, a voice suddenly called out from down the 'street'.

"My, what vision of loveliness has graced mine eyes this day?" the man was saying, and despite Rei's tugging, Lyn couldn't help but look up at the man wearing a green breastplate. "Surely you are an angel descended from heaven to bless this poor knight!" he stopped less than three feet away. "Would you grant me with your name, or better yet your company?"

"Who are you, and what manner of land do you hail from to speak so freely to strangers?" Lyn asked, surprised and a little put out.

"You favour me with your voice, even! Glad I am that you asked, for I am Sain, a Knight of the Caelin canton of Lycia, land of men of fire and passion."

"Home to callow oafs with loose tongues, more like." Rei interjected. "Come on, Lyn, let's go." She pulled her friend not unwillingly away from the green cavalier, who sighed and turned away, likely searching for some other to pester. Once they were out of earshot, Rei chuckled to herself.

"I don't know whether to be disgusted by him or offended that he didn't notice me." she confided, which set Lyn off giggling.

"Maybe you were a little _too_ exotic for him."

"Probably too flat-chested." Rei countered, and Lyn shook her head.

"That's nonsense. Don't get all self-conscious on me." Lyn mock scowled, and Rei eeped.

"Okay, okay, I promise" she returned. "Lets, uh, get those maps..." Lyn nodded, and moved away with Rei in close tow.

It was almost evening by the time they had gathered everything, and they decided to spend a second night at the inn then set off in the morning. As they settled into their room, Rei made sure that the door was closed and gave Lyn a shy smile.

"You don't have to sleep on the floor tonight... if you don't want to. I mean... we could share again. It worked last night..." She shuffled her feet slightly, aware that it might be misinterpreted.

"Are you? I mean... I'd rather not sleep on the floor, but... Ah, hell. No-one's going to complain, and the innkeeper probably thinks we're shieldmates anyway."

"Well, not that you're not attractive, but I don't think I've known you long enough for that!" Rei grinned, relaxing. "Wait... are you saying that such things are common here?"

"Mostly among mercenaries... same-sex pairings crop up quite often. I suppose since most merc companies are all-male, they find love where they can." Lyn frowned, thinking. "It's frowned upon in some places though... Etruria doesn't like it much, and neither do some parts of Lycia. On the other hand, shieldmates tend to be sympathetic to other shieldmated pairs... hm."

"Maybe we should pretend in some places, then." Rei finished the thought. "I don't have a problem with that, unless you do." She moved over and started stripping off her daywear.

"I noticed... you wear that robe to sleep, but what's it made of? I don't recognise it..." Lyn was looking at the sleeping robe curiously and carefully. Her eyes didn't follow it as Rei grabbed it and slipped it on before belting it with the flat sash.

"Silk. It's a beautiful material, and nice to wear...I'd offer you my spare, but it'd be indecent considering the difference in height and - er..." Rei trailed off, realising that she was blushing.

"Endowment?" Lyn finished, then smothered a giggle as the pink tinge on her friend's cheeks flushed bright scarlet.

"Lets just go to sleep" Rei mumbled, sliding into the bed and cuddling under the covers with her face to the wall. Lyn joined her with a grin and a shake of the head, and together they slept.

"Excuse me, could you move your horse?" Lyn smiled at the red-armoured man who was standing in the middle of the road looking around suspiciously.

"Of course. I am sorry. Ah... might I importune on you to tell me if you have seen a knight of Lycia in the city? He would be wearing armour like mine, but green."

"Ehh, that wastrel? He was making passes at girls yesterday in the market." The swordswoman scowled.

"Ah. I feared as much... I was travelling with him on a mission of importance, but we got separated by bandits."

"AHA! Kent, my friend! At last! You decided to take the scenic route, I see?" The cheerful, overly friendly voice of the approaching green cavalier made Rei and Lyn grimace.

"And his name shall summon him..." Rei muttered, getting her an odd look from Kent and a chuckle from Lyn.

"Sain? I arrive, and the first I hear is of your misdemeanours!" Kent was scowling at the brown-haired man, but then turned to give Lyn a polite smile. "Thank you for your help, mamzel."

"It was no trouble. You, at least, seem honourable..." Lyn gave a smile back, though the last word was given with a pointed look at Sain.

"Your words are too kind, though... I cannot help but feel that I have seen you somewhere before, mamzel. Perhaps you..." Kent began, but Sain cut him off.

"No fair! I saw her first, Kent!" The green knight complained, and before the red could reply he was receiving a dark look from both girls.

"It seems that there are _no_ decent men among Lycia's knights! Come on, Rei, I have nothing more to say here." Lyn led her horse past Kent, and forced Sain out of the way with her shoulder. The green knight stumbled with a sigh, then stepped back to avoid Petal and the donkey - though the latter kicked mud up into his face.

"Why me?" he could be heard lamenting before they got out of earshot.

Unseen, a pair of figures detached themselves from the shadows and began to follow the two women as they mounted up and began the short journey east, towards the Shrine of the Spirits.

Only a few hours had passed when the two of them crested a rise that let them see over the trees that were becoming more frequent as they left the edge of the plains. Looking back, Rei squinted at a pair of figures moving along the road.

"We're being followed." She reported, lifting a hand to shade her eyes against the sun.

"Is it those knights from the town?" Lyn asked, looking, "No… the horses are different.."

A cracking twig brought them both whirling around, Lyn's hand going to her sword. The rough-edged man standing there held an axe loosely in one hand.

"Aha. Lyndis, right? Damn, this is a waste. Ah, the things I'll do for money..." He grinned, raising the axe and lunging forward. Lyn was forced to jump back, somersaulting from her horse's back to dodge out of the way, and Petal skidded to one side to avoid the backswing. Rei rolled from the saddle, coming up in a crouch with a knife readied. When the thick, sinewy arm went around her neck a moment later, hauling her up and back into a hard-muscled chest, however, she dropped the thin blade in surprise.

"LYN!" she cried before the ruffian put a hand over her mouth and forced it closed. Finger and thumb clamped over her nose, cutting off her breathing, and as she started to suffocate she saw Lyn fighting a desperate, defensive battle against the stronger axe-fighter.

'_Not like this... please..._' Rei found herself praying as her vision tunnelled.

"How ill-mannered." A cultured, male voice spoke from somewhere behind, and a moment later the pressure faded, allowing the fire-islander to breath again. Looking up from where she'd fallen to catch her breath, she saw the red knight flicking blood from his sword. A moment later, his green-clad companion came galloping from the trees with a lance lowered to strike at the axeman pressing Lyn. The axe came up and knocked the lance away, but it gave the swordfighter a chance to roll in and hamstring him. As Sain came around for another pass, another two axefighters stepped out from behind a cairn and blocked his path. The hamstrung leader limped over to them, using his axe as a shield to fend off Lyn's parting stroke.

"Damn. There was only meant to be a lone girl... ah, well. This don't concern you, knightlings."

"Oh, I don't know. A bunch of ruffians, ambushing and attacking a pair of innocent travellers, and cute girls at that? I reckon it's just knightly prerogative to interfere, wouldn't you say Kent?" Sain grinned as he spoke, re-setting his lance and bringing his horse around. A moment later, Kent's steed walked up to the red knight, who put a foot in the stirrup and lifted himself into the saddle. Unlike the girls, these two were evidently trained to fight from horseback.

"Indeed. Still, it appears that your plans have gone awry, bandit. These two are under our protection." He looked to Lyn, then. "Stay back, we will deal with this."

"This is my fight." Lyn said shortly. "My thanks for helping Rei, but don't interfere."

For her part, the islander was moving slowly sideways to get behind the trio of bandits.

"Hey, we rescued you. You could at least let us finish what we started." Sain replied hotly, but Kent interrupted him.

"I have a compromise. You there. We will follow your orders." He pointed his sword at Rei, and she cursed silently. So much for stabbing the axeman in the back.

"Uh... alright." She stammered back.

"Sounds alright, I suppose." Lyn finished. "Rei and I will lead." She grinned, then. "So, mistress strategist, what do you suggest?" she looked at Rei.

"Ah... Kent, deal with the two thugs. Lyn, go after the leader... Sain..." She span at another cracking sound, and ducked a sword blow "HELP!" she finished, and started back peddling away from the mounted warrior who had come up their back trail.

"I love the group bonding, but this has gone on too long." The bandit smirked. "Get 'em, boys." He ran forwards, his thugs moving a moment later, and was met halfway by Lyn and Kent.

Rei watched the reflection of the fire in Lyn's eyes, mesmerised. The younger woman was watching the two knights like a hawk watches an owl hunting at night - warily, as though it might attack at any moment, and with the respect due a fellow hunter.

"You were going to share your story?" the Sacaean was asking, She still didn't trust the Lycians.

"We were. As you know, I am Kent, and this is Sain. Two weeks ago, Lord Hausen Caelin dispatched us on a mission to the plains to find his daughter, who was living on the plains with her husband. You see, he could not abide her choice of men. I mean no offence when I say this, but he did not believe a Sacaean nomad to be a suitable husband for his heiress and exiled her, through empathy if not by official writ. Then, six months ago, he received a letter from his daughter, Madelyn, saying that she was living quite happily on the plains with her husband Hassar and their sixteen-year-old daughter Lyndis. Though the letter was written as though to gloat, with a daughter's foolishness towards her father, Lord Hausen was overjoyed that they had written at all. His happiness was only increased by the naming of his granddaughter after his late, lamented wife. That was six months ago... only on arriving the day before yesterday in Bulgar did we discover that Lady Madelyn had died days after sending her letter. We had been about to give up hope, but... when I saw you, I knew it. You are the Lady Lyndis." The knight leant forward, earnestly.

"I... to the rest of my tribe, I was always Lyn, but with my parents, I was Lyndis... but I... I had no idea..." she trailed off, thoughtfully.

"Wait..." Rei spoke up. "That bandit... he called you Lyndis, too!" The knights both looked at the diminutive tactician, Sain stopping the continual polishing of his armour to blink, stunned. "How could he have known?"

"He must have been Lundgren's man." Sain muttered darkly after a moment. "Of all the... he must have learned, too. But if he's trying to kill you..."

"Stop." Lyn interrupted. "Who is Lundgren, and why would he want me dead?"

"Lord Lundgren is Lord Hausen's younger brother. When Madelyn disappeared, the position of heir defaulted to him... it looks like he might be trying to keep it that way." Kent frowned. "Though... I didn't think he was capable of murder, especially not kinslaying…"

"If Lord Hausen believed that Sacaeans weren't worthy of Caelin, then maybe his brother thinks the same. That would make Lyn a..." Rei looked back at the girl for a moment, "a lesser being. It's not murder to kill a non-person."

The statement left the whole group silent.

"I hope that is the case." Lyn finally broke the silence, then continued when Kent and Sain looked at her curiously.

"Why?" It was the green knight who voiced their confusion, but Rei who responded.

"Because otherwise, Lord Lundgren might be willing to do other things to ensure his succession." The tactician's voice was low, but the words carried into the night air as though their weight would dampen the entire world.

"Enough. I'll hear no more of this talk tonight. It's warm enough and dry enough not to bother with the tent. I am going to bed. We'll discuss this in the morning." Lyn said, finally, and moved off to gather her bedroll before bringing it back and setting up beside the fire.

"I'll take first watch." Kent said, and Rei nodded.

"I'll take second, then Sain the dog watch. Lyn, do you mind keeping fourth? We're hunted, so we'll need to start keeping watches. Kent, Sain, if Petal or Hunt start acting up, that means someone is about. They're both trained to keep watch." With that, she went to get her own bedroll. "Wake me when the moon sits atop that tree." she indicated, before taking off her boots and cloak and squirreling down into her bedroll.

"Works for me." Sain replied, getting his own sleeping gear out. "I'll just..."

"Other side of the fire, Sain." Kent and Rei said in unison as he started to lay out his bedroll next to Lyn's. They sounded so alike that the green knight made a scared 'eep' sound, and Lyn chuckled quietly.


	3. Sword of Spirits

**Disclaimer:** Nothing recognisable belongs to the author. It all belongs to Nintendo and Intelligent Systems. Some details may have been changed, but… on the whole, it's theirs. This is to be reproduced only with the author's permission, and may not be used for profit. If it is reproduced, this warning must be at the beginning of each document.

* * *

**Chapter 2 - Sword of Spirits**

"I'll come with you to Caelin."

The words still echoed in Rei's head as the shrine came into view. Standing as it did two day's ride from Bulgar, the shrine had had a small village grow up around it to cater to the pilgrims who visited. Lyn had spoken those words after breakfast, saying that she felt she had no choice... they hadn't spoken as to what Rei would do. The tactician had decided to stay quiet until after they'd seen the shrine.

It wasn't much to look at. A blocky, flat-roofed building with a single floor. Small, round windows studded the shrine's sides, and access was gained through a double pair of doors at one end.

"This is the Shrine of the Spirits. My people come here to pray before going on a long journey."

"How... quaint." Sain murmured. He sounded half torn between bemusement and dislike.

"It's good to see that here, at least, the old customs are followed." Kent expanded. "Since the worship of Saint Elimine has spread to most of Elibe…" there, he gave a not-so-subtle glare to Sain.

"The treasure-sword, Mani Katti, is enshrined here. It's said to be a sword without equal - a perfect blade."

"Such has also been said about many swords." Rei smiled to take the sting from her words. "I wish to see this sword... my people often revere such things. A sword that has never been bloodied is pure... but one steeped in death and use may hold great power."

No one seemed to be able to reply to that, so they started walking their horses into the village. Suddenly, a young woman came out from around the low wall surrounding the shrine and ran towards them.

"Please! You're mercenaries, aren't you? You have to help the priest! It's that Glass and his gang, I think they plan to steal the Mani Katti!"

"What? But..." Lyn frowned. "Of course we'll help. Boys, lets go." She drew her sword and pushed her horse's reins into Rei's hands. The two knights took their own swords from the sheaths on their saddles, and Rei took their horses' reins as well.

"Be careful in there..." the Kanhi girl smiled, and Lyn nodded before running the last hundred meters to the shrine with Kent and Sain hot on her heels.

"They'll be ok." the woman said, encouragingly, seeing the worried look on Rei's face.

"I hope so..." Rei replied, watching the door as shouts and the sound of metal on metal rung out.

"So which one's yours? The redhead, or the one with the headband?"

"What!" Rei gaped at the woman. "Neither! I..."

"Oh, so the Lady has them both? That can't feel too good."

"You… no! It's not like that; we only just met up with them. We're travelling together, that's all." Rei scowled. "Besides, half the time I think they might be in love with each other…"

"Hah. That would be a shame... still, at least it means they won't miss you." The woman's voice held a vicious tone on the last note.

"Wh-what?" Rei turned to look at her, eyes widening, then threw herself back to avoid a dagger. She dropped the horses rein's to pull out one of her own.

"Seems you've got quite the future... too bad you won't live to experience it." The woman lunged twice with the dagger, and Rei was forced to parry one blow with her own and dodge the other.

"Assassin... who do you work for? Is there really someone trying to steal the sword?" Rei launched an attack of her own, but the thrust was poorly aimed and went wide.

"Yes... they'd never have thought of it on their own, but I don't suppose that really matters. Small-time crooks." Rei caught the dagger in the hole on her own this time, and held it there in a lock.

"Who employs you? Why do they want to get rid of me?"

"The Lord of a Thousand Plagues... and all that I know is that he wants you gone. Goodbye." The woman's other arm came up, throwing a dagger that had been concealed. The blade tangled in the folds of Rei's cloak, however, missing flesh, and a moment later the assassin was knocked flying by a well-placed kick from a fully grown Sacaean Warsteed mare. She impacted against a tree with a second sickening crunch, before falling to the ground in a crumpled heap. Hunt stamped the ground, satisfied, and went back to flirting with Sain's warhorse.

"Thanks..." Rei muttered to the horse as her heart rate returned to normal. Moving over to the assassin's body, she grimaced before nudging it with her foot. It was dead. Squinting down, she noticed a small tattoo on the base of the woman's neck that had been covered by her collar. A tiny fang, done in black ink. A moment later, the tattoo faded as though it had never been. Rei frowned and returned to the horses, gathering reins and walking them up to the shrine. She tied them on to the fence post before heading into the shrine.

Three bodies lay on the floor. Axes lay by two of them - one a hatchet, the other a proper waraxe. The third had a sword. Metal clanged on metal a moment later, making Rei look up. By the altar, Lyn was fighting a man with blonde hair. The two seemed fairly evenly matched, and Lyn had taken to wielding her scimitar two-handed in an effort to smash through the swordsman's guard. Kent and Sain stood nearby, looking for an opening to try and break the stalemate. Rei knew that they couldn't get involved without seriously risking Lyn's life, since any distractions would cause her to possibly lose her defence.

"How can you be so strong!" The man growled, then lunged with his longsword. The blow was parried and knocked past, but the sheathed sword in the swordsman's other hand came up and used the opening to hilt-punch Lyn in the stomach and drive the air from her lungs. She stumbled backwards, only just managing to her a hand up in time to catch the blade against the palm of her glove.

"You keep a sharp sword..." the Sacaean woman told the thug, before bringing her sword up and driving the point up into his neck, past the poorly-raised scabbard of the Mani Katti.

"No… I am... Glass... I cannot..." Glass gurgled, before expiring. Lyn let him down slowly as the others moved up.

"He was... pretty tough." Rei murmured. "I think his sword is worth taking..."

"Never mind that, is the priest alright?" Kent interrupted, looking around. A moment later, the vestry door creaked open and an aged bishop came out, holding a heavy tome.

"Where is he? I'll show him for invading the shrine..." the old man growled, hefting his divine spellbook. "Oh... you killed him." He turned to Lyn and the others. "Thank you... but blood is devilish to get out of stone. Besides, such pretty young ladies shouldn't be wasting time fighting." He let the book hang from the chain connecting it to his belt, then moved forwards, clasping his hands together.

"What am I, chopped meat?" Sain muttered, scowling.

"It's you in thirty years, Sain! Be more understanding," Rei whispered back, earning her a scowl all of her own.

"As a token of my thanks, you may lay hands upon the Mani Katti." He bent from the knee to pick the sword up from where Glass had dropped it and passed the still sheathed sword to Lyn. Rei peered over, and noted with some surprise that rather than the traditional, heavy curve of Lyn's sword, and those of the nomads she'd seen in Bulgar the sword was much lighter, having only a slight curve. The hilt was longer, too, and bound in leather in a pattern that left diamond-shaped gaps that showed the underlying material of the hilt. The sword had no pommel, either, and the guard was round and only just large enough to protect the thumb and forefinger of the hand gripping the blade. The nomad's swords had heavy pommels, and basket hilts like a cross between a scimitar and a rapier. The Mani Katti, on the other hand...

"The sword of spirits... is a katana?" Rei vocalised her surprise.

"Is it? It is exceptionally crafted, and has much power. It has been a focal point for spiritual energies since the founding of our country." The priest replied.

"This is the style of sword made in my homeland... though without seeing the blade, I couldn't judge it against those blades. Since the Mani Katti was made, there have likely been refinements to the technique..."

Lyn reached out and took the blade gently from the priest's offering hands, and the reaction cut off any further discussion of the blade's heritage. The hilt flashed brightly, and a steady glow spilled from where the scabbard met the guard.

"Oh my..." The priest murmured, enraptured. "The spirits... oh, to meet you... I never thought..."

"What? What does this mean, old-timer?" Sain asked, impatiently.

"The sword has chosen a wielder. My lady, you are the chosen wielder of the Mani Katti, the treasure sword of Sacae."

"What? But... I'm just ordinary... I'm not..." Lyn stammered.

"If you seek proof, just draw the blade from its scabbard. You saw what happens when normal people try." the bishop told her, then took a step back. Lyn frowned, then put her hand on the hilt and drew the sword forth.

"It came out... easily." The blade continued to glow for a moment, before fading to reveal the pattern of the blade. Rei leaned closer, appraisingly, and let out a small gasp.

"It's... beautiful... Spirits, forgive me. I had misjudged your taste... you have chosen a perfect vessel." the tactician whispered in awe.

"Ehm." Lyn coughed, slightly. "Rei... could you... move back a bit? I feel kind of uncomfortable with you drooling over my sword."

Rei blinked, then stepped back, flushing.

"Of... of course. Sorry... it's just..." she shook her head, not trusting herself to speak.

"You have a great destiny ahead of you," the priest began, and waited until everyone was looking at him to continue. "The Mani Katti has only awoken for a very few in the past, and always it has been a time of dire need. Be on your guard, warriors. I am sure that you will need its gifts, and more, by the end of your journey. Good luck. Now, go. I'm sure you have far to travel." With that, he started chivvying them out of the shrine. When they were outside, the door shut behind them.

"He seemed suddenly eager to be rid of us..." Rei muttered, looking back at the door as she unhitched her horse. As the group walked on, she noticed that the woman's body had gone. Hiding her frown, she decided not to mention it. It would only worry Lyn, and the girl had too many worries already.

"Perhaps he simply wished the blade gone before our Great Destiny lead to his Grand Funeral." Sain replied, earning himself another of Kent's looks.

"Do not be so uncharitable. He likely had work to do, that's all," The red knight reprimanded, "and he's right. We do have a long way to go. Caelin is a good month away on horseback."

"Rei..." Lyn started, but the Kanhi islander cut her off.

"If you want me to come along, I will. I know this is important to you, and there's no real reason for me to continue east."

"But your fiancé..."

"Is as likely to be in Lycia as Biran. Here's to hoping we don't find him." The exchange left the two knights looking at each other nonplussed. After a moment, Rei took pity on them.

"Before we ran into you, our plan was to travel into Biran in search of my fiancé. I really don't like the man, however, so the longer I fail to find him, the later I have to marry him. Look down on me if you must, but... I have no wish to give my life where my father decreed it."

"You do not love him? Yet your father wishes you to marry... surely he wishes to act in your best interest?" Kent frowned. "It would be your duty to do as he wishes..."

"The man is a lout, a braggart and a fool. I won't be treated like an object, no matter what my people's customs say! Especially not to... to someone who can't accept who and what I am without seeing it as some kind of illness." She spat the last word, ending her raving tirade and lapsing into sullen, angry silence.

They continued that way for the rest of the day's journey, though Lyn nudged Hunt in between Petal and the knight's horses, as though protecting the outlander.


	4. Band of Mercenaries

**Disclaimer:** Nothing recognisable belongs to the author. It all belongs to Nintendo and Intelligent Systems. Some details may have been changed, but… on the whole, it's theirs. This is to be reproduced only with the author's permission, and may not be used for profit. If it is reproduced, this warning must be at the beginning of each document.

* * *

**Chapter 3 - Band of Mercenaries**

The next morning saw them setting off with the dawn. Rei still wasn't talking to Kent, despite Lyn's efforts to get her to forgive him and Sain's pleading with the crimson shield to apologise. Kent, of course, refused to believe that he had done something wrong.

"When I rescued her," Lyn muttered to Sain as they rode about ten feet behind Kent and fifteen in front of Rei, "I had no idea she kept grudges so well..."

"How long have you known each other?" The green knight asked, too annoyed by his friend's behaviour to feel up to flirting.

"Not long. I found her unconscious on the plains only about a week before meeting up with you."

"Exhaustion? Or was she attacked? I've not asked, but... I don't recognise her origins. Is she Sacaean?"

"She'd ridden herself into the ground, but no, she's not. She's from an island chain far to the north - Kanhi, I think she called it."

"She's certainly striking." Sain thought aloud, though quietly so that neither Kent nor Rei would hear.

"Mm, though insecure. It's strange. She worries that she won't be noticed... but then she seems to hate the only men she ever mentions."

"Maybe she was abused, then... In which case, she's tougher than she looks. If that is so, I'm glad you two are so close."

"Are we, though? She keeps mentioning an illness, but... she hasn't told me what. It can't be anything serious, since she seems healthy enough, but... I must say it worries me."

"Ah," Sain disagreed, "she said that her father and betrothed _believed_ that it was an illness. Perhaps it is not a physical problem? From what you've both said, she comes from a fairly closed society. Perhaps she is simply too free-thinking for them?"

"I hadn't thought of that... she has become happier since I met her and started telling her about the countries around here..."

"I've yet to see her smile, or laugh properly, though. Does she have aught but that controlled chuckle?"

"I've seen her smile, once. She has a nice smile..."

"Then I shall endeavour to put it back on her face. I suggest a change of tack." The green chevalier gave his winning smile. "Go talk at Kent, milady Lyndis." He twitches his reins so that his horse started walking more slowly, dropping back to walk beside Petal. The horse eyed them, warily, but the rider continued looking stiffly forward.

"Lady Rei, surely you know that such a sour face does not suit?" The errant knight began.

"Has Kent sent you to talk of duty and obedience, knight?" Came the cold reply.

"Hardly. If he had, then I would not. Such words are fine for a knight of Lycia, but to a water lily like yourself? The heart should dictate your course. So, tell me. Onerous alliances aside, are there none your breast has fluttered for?"

"Sain," Rei turned stony eyes to the Lycian, her tone still cold. "What is it you want?"

"To see you smile, ashen lily. To bring joy to your face. To walk among a garden of drooping flowers for long is to lose a part of your own lust for life - I could not countenance such a loss for one of your subtle beauty."

"Your words... you never sound sincere, Sain." Those dark eyes turned away, staring at the trees that were becoming closer together as they approached the foothills of Taliver mountain. "How can I trust you when you speak such pretty lines with so little soul?"

"If to you I sound lacking in spirit, then perhaps you perceive me better than I do myself. To me, my words are always true. I may not be a model knight, but all my faults are to the better. Honesty is important."

"Prove it."

"Ask me a question, then, fair lily."

"How many men have you slept with?" Though she didn't look at the knight, Sain could have sworn that he saw the edge of a smirk starting to form.

"One, though I've never thought to repeat the experience. My taste runs to women."

The response left Rei gaping at his response. She'd expected him to deny ever even thinking about it, whether he had or not.

"You are... full of surprises, knight," she spoke at last. "Was it?" She looked up towards where Lyn was talking to Kent. The discussion seemed to be serious in tone.

"Sain, not 'knight'. It sounds so... impersonal. And no, it wasn't that stubborn fool. I swore secrecy not to tell anyone who it was, either." He grinned. "He'd never forgive me. It was an experiment for both of us, that's all."

"Knight, I fear that if I treat you personally you will push yourself too far. I would hate to deprive the world of your charms, but I fear that you might force my hand if I showed the slightest familiarity." The islander's voice was cold again, but with a teasing edge so subtle as to be nearly unmissable. "So tell me, knight. Why do you chase so?"

"Ah, I fear it is a curse upon my line. All of my family must find a partner before the age of twenty-five, or a fate most terrible shall befall us." He replied, deadly serious. She looked at him carefully, and the serious look slipped for a moment.

"What fate would that be?" She asked, suspiciously.

"We will die alone and unloved, never to know the touch of a woman or man again." He told her, mournfully, his brown eyes large and soulful, drooping slightly.

"Right." Rei replied, dryly. "You can stop staring at my chest now." She finished, before goading Petal into a slightly faster pace. Sain spluttered, then nudged his horse to keep up.

"H-hey, that's not what…" he started, but the tactician ignored him, staring intently over Lyn and Kent's shoulders. He stopped, then looked up to see what she'd seen. A large, winged shape flew steadily towards them before dropping down behind the shoulder of the mountain

"That was too big to be a bird. Do you have any large flying creatures in Lycia?" Rei asked, shading her eyes in the hope of seeing it again.

"No…" Sain replied, frowning and doing the same. "Though Ilia to the west has Pegasi, and Biran to the east is known to field knights mounted on wyverns. It could be an Ilian Pegasus Knight. They're mercenaries, so they travel quite a lot…"

"Well, we should be near where it went down soon. It worries me. It might have been a spy of some kind."

"Lets hope not – if Lundgren is using such pricey mercenaries, we'll be in trouble." The knight finished, consternation colouring his voice. "We should know soon – that's less than ten minutes away. Perhaps there's a village." He grinned at Rei, then moved up to interrupt the others who had continued talking oblivious.

"What happened here?" Kent asked a short while later, frowning again as he looked around the rubble that had once been the outskirts of a moderate-sized city.

"Bandits." Lyn replied, cold anger burning in her voice. "My people were camped only on the other side of this mountain when they were wiped out. This is Taliver Mountain, home to the bandits by the same name. They were bad before, but… six months ago, someone armed them, practically giving them good weapons and armour. My people didn't stand a chance… especially not with the water poisoned…" she trailed off.

"Why doesn't the marquess put a stop to it?" Sain asked, mirroring his shield-brother's frown.

"No marquess rules here. The people of the plains and mountains… there are two kinds of people who live here. We Sacaeans, who must stay, and those who see us and wish to share our freedom. They accept no ruler, forming communities that survive through co-operation. Once, this was the greatest city in Sacae, but the Biran border creeps closer from the south every day, and the bandits press it from the north. Now, only a tiny core remains…" she sighed, then nudged Hunt forward again. "There's nothing they can do and still remain free, so they endure as best they can…"

They walked in silence for a while. '_Freedom…_' Rei contemplated, looking around at the ruins. '_What price must be paid? It is what I desire, but… to live in fear is no more freedom than being ruled and taxed…_' she sighed, quietly to herself, then saw Sain moving closer again. She hid a grimace – she was in no mood any longer for his teasing and flirting. Fortunately, she was saved a moment later.

"Hey – what's going on over there?" Kent asked, looking to the left slightly. A long building stood among the ruins, while outside a small girl with pale, blue-grey hair was being menaced by a couple of toughs. Behind her, though, was something that made Rei gasp.

"Is that… a Pegasus?" Lyn asked, frowning, then spurred her horse forward. The others followed a little behind. "Florina!" Lyn called, and the three looked up. "It is! Florina, what are you doing here?" she continued, amazed.

"I… I came looking for you… but… I heard that you'd left the plains, so I came looking…" the girl stammered, and Rei realised that she wasn't really all that small - an inch shorter than the tactician if that. It was just that she stood so hunched over and frightened, clutching her hands together in front of her.

"Hey, it's okay." Lyn smiled, then turned to the thugs. "Now, what seems to be the problem here?" her tone shifted to hold a dangerous note.

"This clumsy witch landed on poor Miguel!" The smaller of the two toughs answered, hostilely. "Now she's got to pay."

"Florina, did you apologise?" Lyn asked, and Rei came up to stand just beside her. Kent and Sain flanked them; wearing identical 'bodyguard' scowls.

"Yes, many times over… I said I was sorry, but they wouldn't listen…" Florina replied, then let out a pained gasp as the bigger man – Miguel – grabbed her arm roughly.

"Enough of this. The girl is coming with us. If you know what's good for you, you'll leave alone." He growled the words out, then yanked on Florina's arm. Lyn dismounted, starting to move forward, but Rei's dagger got there first, piercing the arm that held the Pegasus knight through the bicep.

"You bitch!" Miguel roared, letting go of Florina to rip the knife from his arm. He went for the axe at his belt.

"Don't." Rei said, coldly. "Neither of you were hurt. Let her go and leave. Otherwise, that may change." She slipped off her own horse, face carefully blank of all emotion.

"Don't be daft! You cut our leader, and no one does that and gets away with it." The smaller thug laughed, viciously.

"Really? Would you cross Lycia for the sake of one girl, one cut?" Rei continued, mildly before gesturing to Kent and Sain. "These two are Knights of Lycia, and have the ear of their Marquess. No doubt that if you harm us, others will come looking. Your precious gang would not survive it."

"Who cares? So some knights come looking – they're no match for the Ganelon!" Miguel chuckled. "Kill the knights," he told his companion, "and if any of you…" he looked at the knights, Rei and Lyn. "If any of you move, she dies." He grabbed Florina again, holding knife to her throat.

"One question." Sain piped up from the back. "Is he one of yours?" He asked, nodding to behind Miguel.

"Like I'm going to fall for that old trick." The bandit lieutenant sneered, and Rei let a knife slip into her hand, keeping both hidden under her cloak. She couldn't see anyone behind the bandit – but then, Sain was still mounted.

"Perhaps you should listen. Knights tend to tell the truth." The youthful voice came from behind Miguel, where the knight had indicated. A boy, probably. Fifteen or sixteen years old from the voice. "I'm not a good person to have as an enemy, and I know I prefer to make friends, but… this is a lot of fuss for an accident."

"Shut up, boy. This doesn't concern you." Miguel didn't turn around.

"Maybe not, but the arrow on my bow should concern you. It's fully drawn, you see, and aimed between your shoulder blades. I've never felt it, but I'm told that an arrow there hurts like hell." The voice continued in the same friendly tone. "I believe we have something of an Biranese Standoff. I know I'm not going to back down. Somehow, I doubt that the knights will allow you to kill them without resisting. I certainly don't think the girls are going to just let you take them." He paused. "Of course, I could just shoot you. That would solve all our problems."

"Wh… how dare you?" Miguel growled, his forehead creasing as he tried to follow the jovial barrage. "Aargh, enough of this. Rat, get the others." With that, he lifted the knife away from Florina's throat before smashing her in the forehead with the hilt, knocking her out as the other tough ran off into the ruins. He then sidestep-turned to charge at Will, dodging the arrow as it was released. The archer ducked the blow, hurriedly, then the knights flashed into action, swords slipping from saddle-sheaths with a single sound...

* * *

"Florina? Florina, can you hear me?" Lyn knelt over the girl, cradling her head on her knees and dabbing blood away from where the bandit's knife had broken the skin with a wet cloth. After a moment, the orchid-haired girl groaned and blinked her eyes open. 

"L-Lyn? Oh, Lyn! It is you…" She came awake properly and hugged the girl, startling her. "I was scared…"

"Ssh." Lyn started stroking her hair, gently. "It's okay. I'm here now. The bandits are gone. Why did you come looking for me, Florina? Is something wrong?"

"N-no… But… do you remember the final initiation rites for the Pegasus knights of Ilia? We have to spend a year working with a mercenary company…"

"But... aren't most mercenaries men? Bands of men?" Lyn frowned, seeing where this was going.

"Yes… so... I wanted to come and see you first…" Florina pulled away, standing up and offering a hand to pull Lyn to her feet. "Because… you know..."

"You're not very comfortable around men, yes. I can see that being a problem." Lyn frowned in thought. "Why not travel with us for a while? It looks like we might have a lot of trouble in the future… it would be as good experience as working with mercenaries. Besides, there's someone I'd like you to meet…"

A short distance away, Rei chuckled despite herself as she watched Kent chase Sain around in circles in the inn's courtyard. Kent was desperately trying to engage the other knight in sword drill, but the green lance evidently preferred not to practice that particular martial art. As it was, the two of them would probably wear themselves out after a while and collapse. A sudden presence at her shoulder made Rei look up to see the shadow of a boy – she realised a moment later that it was the archer from before.

"Excuse me… could I talk to you?" He asked, and she nodded.

"Sure. Take a seat. My name's Rei." She patted the ground next to her, moving her cloak so he wouldn't sit on the edge of it.

"Wil, from Pherae. Your group seems to be on a journey of sorts, and… well, I was wondering if I could join you all. I'm at… something of a crossroads, and with those bandits chased off there's no reason for me to stick around here."

"Hm. I don't see any reason why not, though I warn you – we're hunted. We're travelling to Caelin in Lycia to stop Lord Hausen's brother from trying to kill us, and he's hired some pretty fearsome assassins." She paused for a moment, then smiled, tightly. "If you promise not to tell the others, I'd like your opinion on something. I don't want to worry them overmuch, since it doesn't seem to have anything to do with them yet."

"I don't know. You sure you want to ask me? I'm… you don't even know if I'm coming with you." Wil frowned.

"If you want to, you can. Archers are invaluable, and for that alone I think you'd be welcome. Plus, you seem like an alright person. Besides, if you don't come with us, it won't matter."

"Alright, then. What is it you wanted my opinion on?"

By way of reply, Rei reached into her cloak and pulled out a slip of paper and a stick of charcoal, sketching out a small emblem and showing it to him. A sharp gasp of surprise and an incredulous look were her reward.

"This is… I don't know for sure, but… I think it's safe to say this is the symbol of the black fang. They're a group of really powerful assassins from Biran, but… where did you see this? They don't normally go after normal people," he frowned. "They target people who abuse their power."

"Strange. That's not me… I don't have any power to abuse. Still, I was targeted. They seem ruthless – the one that attacked me thought nothing of putting a harmless old priest in danger and defiling a shrine. She said that I had an important future, and that the 'lord of a thousand plagues' wanted to get rid of me… do you have any idea who that might be?" She took the paper back, rubbing it to erase the charcoal mark then cleaning her fingers on the hem of her cloak.

"No, I'm afraid not. Sorry…" Wil replied, trailing off as the Sain gave up, finally relenting and picking up his sword. "When do you plan to move on? I think those bandits will be after you now, since that rat escaped."

"In the morning. We're safe enough here, I think, for now. They'll need time to martial the whole gang."

"Alright." He nodded. "Who is in charge of the group, anyway? I approached you because you weren't involved in anything."

"Lyn is… she should be finished nursing the Pegasus girl by now. I'll introduce you." She stood, offering a hand to the archer, and they went to talk to Lyndis.


	5. Beyond the Borders

**Disclaimer:** Nothing recognisable belongs to the author. It all belongs to Nintendo and Intelligent Systems. Some details may have been changed, but… on the whole, it's theirs. This is to be reproduced only with the author's permission, and may not be used for profit. If it is reproduced, this warning must be at the beginning of each document.**  
**

**A/N: **Sorry about the length, as well, but it wasn't a very long chapter to start with.

* * *

**Chapter 5 - Beyond the Borders**

"Damn, they're persistent..." Lyn muttered, glancing over her shoulder. A large group of bandits were following them, as they had been since two days before when they'd camped in the old castle.

"They're catching up..." Rei replied, slightly fearful. For her sentiment, she recieved a dirty look from Florina.

"We'll be fine, as long as Lyn's with us." The pegasus knight replied from where Huey walked beside them, wings held tight in.

"If you say so. This is not good ground for fighting on. Too hilly and rocky - what would you or the cavaliers do if your mounts turned a hoof?"

"We would fight on foot, until the last, lady Rei." Kent replied, stiffly.

"Aye, and we'd protect the lovely ladies too!" Sain finished, grinning. "Come, don't worry. We're all here, and if there's anything we can't deal with, then the horses won't matter anyway."

"If you say so..."

"Really, Rei. Don't worry so much. The bandits suffer the same problems we do."

"I hate to rain on this parade, m'ladies, but... that might not be the case so much." Wil's voice startled them as he appeared out of seemingly nowhere. He'd been scouting ahead, and from the look on his face he didn't like what he'd seen.

"There's a cleric and her escort up in those woods you can see, and they're right in the path of the bandits' second party," the archer continued. "Somehow they got a group in _front_ of us. I've warned the priestess about them, but she seemed... confident. I don't know if she'll heed my words or not."

"Blast." Lyn swore, thoughtfully. "We'll have to make it a stand then. This priestess' escort - did he look like he might be able to help?"

"Not really. He looked like he's a couple of years younger than me, and he didn't have any weapons with him. Might have been hiding them under his cloak, I guess, but..."

"We can't rely on him being any use. Alright... Rei? What do you suggest?"

"Fighting isn't the best option... we should move into those trees though. Do your priestesses not learn to use the power of the elements?"

"Some powerful clerics can wield holy magic," Kent replied as they started moving again, Wil slinging up behind him to ride pillion. "but not elemental magic. Only mages are permitted to practice that in most of Elibe. I can't really tell much more than that."

"I see. We cannot assume anything

about these two, so I'll have to plan without them. We'll make our stand in the forest outskirts if possible. Wil, what is the cover like?" The Kanhi girl directed her suddenly cool and professional gaze at her scout.

"Pretty sparse, but some of the trees are solid. This isn't the most fertile land."

"When we get there, I want you to find one of those solid trees and get the priestess into it. I want you protecting her and her guardian, at least until we know what he can do. Florina, I want you to go off to the left and lay in wait to ambush them as they past you. Hide yourself if you can find cover, otherwise..."

"They won't look up until it's too late. I... I'll come at them out of the sun. That's what my training says..."

"I'm sure you can do it, Florina." Lyn smiled at the knight, who nodded. Lyn gave her confidence, Rei noticed. It may be best to keep them near each other when the situation favoured it... Without letting it show on her face, the dark-haired girl squashed the surprisingly negative emotion attached to that idea.

"Kent, I'd like you to do something similar from the other side. Ambush them from behind when they're past. Sain, I want you to give Wil you horse and play the man-at-arms. Lyn and I will be the bait. For the ambushers - remember. Wait until we have engaged before springing the trap. We have to destroy their _kenki_ here, or they'll hound us all the way to Caelin. Take out anyone who looks like a leader."

By this time, with the quickened pace they had taken after Wil rejoined them, they had made it to the edge of the woods.

"Um.. Rei?" Lyn asked as soon as she finished talking. "What do you mean by... ah... 'Ken key'?"

"Oh!" Rei flushed red, embarassed. "I'm sorry... I don't really know the translation exactly... the characters for.." she waved her hands vaguely in the air, guiding her horse with her knees. "It's pretty much the will to fight and win. Fighting spirit?"

"Ah. I think I understand. There is a word in Sacaean, but again... it doesn't translate exactly. Kent, there's a good place to conceal yourself. Florina, you should wait here, too. Wil, will you show us to where you left the priestess?"

"At once. It's just up ahead..." His directions were rendered mute a moment later by raised voices from the other side of the slight rise the wooded area sat astride.

"Eek! Erk, do something!" A shrill voice commanded, frantically. "He's shooting at me!"

The group crested the rise to see the second group of bandits clustered around the cleric and her escort.

"No... it can't be... Lyn, please, forgive me, but... I can't let that girl see me..." Rei spoke softly, doing her best to hide the fear that struck her heart at the sight of the bright _pink_ hair of the staff-carrying woman with the person she assumed to be the priestess.

"Rei? Why not? Are you..?" Whatever Lyn was going to ask was cut off as the red-cloaked one shoved the other into the leaf litter, the arrow that was about to strike her shoulder tangling in the red hood instead.

"Enough of this," the young voice came to them. "You there, archer. See if you can match me!" The shugenja threw up their arms, pushing their cloak back to reveal a tunic and trousers, belted at the middle with cord that seemed mostly there to hold the various pouches that hung from it. "Eygyas, Barias, Varuel!" were intoned, as though summoning servants. "Cleansing Flame!" came the call, before hands dropped to make several sigils in the air, each of which burned brighter than the last. Finally, the spirit-magic userr threw hands at the archer, palms towards the spell's target. Flames rose from the floor, twisting in a trellis-gate pattern until they met above the mage's head. A moment later, the fire spell was released, a head-sized globe of flame shooting forth from the sigil at the top of the flame-gate to explode between the archer and his sword-bearing companion with catastrophic effects.

"She's a shugenja. That's good." Rei muttered, before dismounting. "Wil, you should take her and deploy in hiding, one either side." That said, she disappeared into the woodland, her cloak forming effective camouflage.

* * *

Lyn frowned to herself, worried as she walked away from the small camp they'd made. The battle had dragged through half the afternoon, and by the time the last of the bandits had been defeated the entire party were exhausted. The mage – Erk, who had turned out to be not only male but an escort to the Elimine cleric Serra - had elected to remain with them for the night before moving on. She'd asked the knights not to mention Rei to them, considering the girls' attitude on first seeing the cleric, and also to avoid mentioning what they were about. 

Now, though, it was past dusk the tactitian hadn't returned.

"Rei?" She called out softly, caught in the dilemma of wanting one person to hear you but no others. "Are you there?" There was no answer, and she moved further from the camp. The horrid thought that the essentially noncombatant islander might have been caught by a group of bandits they'd missed crossed her mind, but she squashed it.

A moment later, she heard a soft thump behind her and turned, hand going to her weapon from instinct.

"It's me..." Rei whispered, leaning against the tree she'd just walked past. Lyn relaxed, dropping her stance.

"Are you alright?" Lyn waited for Rei to nod before pressing on. "Why did you dissapear like that? What is it about that girl?"

Rei opened her mouth to answer, but was cut off by a surprised exclaimation.

"Oh! Who's this? I was suspicious when you sneaked off, but I didn't expect this!" The cleric's high-pitched voice grated on both girls' nerves immediatly, but Rei's reaction still shocked her companion when the girl stepped out into full view and bowed deeply from the waist.

"Gomen nasai, Nadeshiko-sama. Anata no oniisan Kojiro-san ni miemasen desu!" she spoke very quickly, as though rushing to get the words out, and neither witness had a clue what she was saying.

"Wow. I don't think anyone's ever bowed to me like that before!" Serra exclaimed, at once joyous and slightly embarrassed. "What's she saying?" She looked at Lyn, who just looked blank.

After a moment, Rei straightened slowly, switching back to the trade-language.

"You don't..? You mean.." she stammered coming to look at Serra more closely. "You... you have the hair, and the features... you're definitly related, but you don't..." The dark-haired girl collapsed back against the tree, every line of her body suggesting relief. "Please forgive me, my Lady."

"That's alright. Who did you mistake me for?" As Serra blathered on, Lyn made her own examination. Apart from the difference in colouration - Serra had none of Rei's dark tan, and her eyes were blue rather than black. Not to mention the hair - the cleric had the same basic features. She was slightly taller, but she was as similar to Rei as any two Sacaeans were alike.

"You're the very image of my betrothed's sister. I had thought that you were sent to find out why I hadn't found him yet... The fact you're travelling with a priestess helped..."

As she trailed off, Lyn it was all Lyn could do to suppress a chuckle.

"Ah, Rei? Serra is the priestess. Erk is a boy." she said, and Rei blinked at her while the real cleric smothered a giggle behind her hand.

"You look like someone hit you over the back of the head with a board." the cleric told her, and Rei stammered a few times before managing to speak.

"But... he was using elemental magic... calling on the spirits to make it work... how did.. then... but.." The tactician was clearly dumbfounded.

"Priests and Clerics use healing magic and Light magic. Mages like Erk use elemental magic." Lyn explained to the foreigner, who shook her head slowly and made as though to reply.

"Then there's druids as well. They use horrible, evil Dark magic." Serra interrupted her, shuddering. "They trade in their souls for the knowledge and slowly go mad. Or not so slowly in some cases."

"O.. oh. I see... But... who intervenes with the spirits then..? If you have a drought or a bad storm... how do you make peace if your priests don't talk to them..? Do the... the 'mages' do it?"

"Er.." Serra looked completely blank. "spirits? Saint Elimine speaks with God for such problems... but... we haven't had a drought or a storm _that_ bad in centuries..."

"Your countries are very strange." Rei told both women, and Lyn giggled to herself.

"Not everywhere follows the teachings of St. Elimine. Most Sacaeans still follow the spirits, and Mother Earth and Father Sky. My Mani-katti is a spirit sword, remember. Perhaps it is simply that Elibe does not suffer these problems because our priests and the mages of other lands do it without telling anyone."

Serra didn't look happy with what the Sacaean was saying, but any tirade she might have given was interrupted by the young, high voice of her escort.

"Serra! Where are you? I swear, you are _not_ the woman I agreed to escort!" he came scrambling down the embankment they were at the foot of, scowling from under his purple fringe. When Rei saw him clearly, she suppressed an exclamation even as Serra protested her innocence.

"I put out the advert for.." she was saying as Lyn leaned in to hear Rei's thoughts.

"What is it?"

"He's so... young! How old is he, fifteen, sixteen? I've never seen a Shugenja younger than thirty before... and I saw how he handled that magic."

"He's fourteen, and a journeyman. He's the apprentice of the Magelord, Pent... or so I'd gathered. He seems rather proud of his master, so I think he must be someone fairly important, though I've never heard of him."

"No! You're _my_ escort, Erk! Mine!" Serra's raised voice cut into their whispered conversation, and they both looked up to see a cowed-looking journeyman spellcaster backed up against a tree.

"I think we should rescue him..." Rei whispered back. "Since she's not one of my... one of Kojiro's family, I think I'd like to invite them to join us... the mage at least, and they seem to come as a pair."

"If you're sure... it would make travelling the last few days outside Lycia safer. After that, Kent's promised us aid from the marquis."

"Exactly." Rei finished, before moving forwards. "Lady Serra, Journeyman Erk... myself and Lady Lyndis have come to a decision. I do not know whether you have a mission of your own or not, but... we would like you to join up with us, at least until our paths must part. It would be safer for the both of our groups."

"Where are you going? We're travelling to Ositia." Erk responded, but Serra cut him off with a wave of her hand.

"We would be delighted to accompany you. Erk's magic, and my healing powers are powerful, but... on our own, we're easy pickings." Then she whispered something to Erk with an excited look. For his part, the mage responded with a somewhat ill look.

"Alright, then. Welcome to Lyndis' legion. We generally break camp shortly after dawn, so you should join the others and get some sleep."

"Alright. Run along, Erk, and ask Lady Lyndis to show you where we can set up." Serra commanded her escort, who rolled his eyes and went over to the Sacaean. The swordlady smiled at him and they started talking as they walked back to the camp.

"No... who are you? Who is this woman you thought I was?" Serra started, moving closer like it was some kind of interrogation.

"er..." Rei stepped back, uncertain. "Not so close... please... my name is Rei, I'm a tactitian from the Kanhi islands to the north of Elibe. The woman I thought you were... her name is Nadeshiko Naoki, and she's the daughter of the local daimyou... um... warlord."

"Is she pretty? Rich? What does she do?" The cleric pressed on, making the tactician very uncomfortable.

"Yes, very... on both... um... mostly she doesn't do anything... she's married to the master of a martial arts school."

"So she's a fighter? Female warriors are so amazing..." Privately, Rei agreed with her - though likely for different reasons. However;

"No, she's a wife," she said aloud. "That's all she does. Manage the school and look after the students, I suppose. I don't really know, since that's not how I let my father raise me. It is what he wants me to become, though..."

"Why didn't you stay then? Why run away?"

"... I didn't run away." Rei scowled at the cleric. "I was sent. I'm on a mission to find my betrothed, as I said before. Besides, I don't want to marry him."

"Isn't he rich, though? And handsome?"

"I don't want to talk about this any more... but I wouldn't marry Kojiro Nadeshiko if he was the overlord of the fire isles."

"But.." Serra started, but the kanhi girl was already bowing and walking away. For a moment, the cleric was almost certain that she saw a dark shadow hanging over Rei, but then her usual self-absorbedness reasserted itself and blanked out the sign that someone else might have a problem.


	6. Blood of Pride

**Disclaimer:** Nothing recognisable belongs to the author. It all belongs to Nintendo and Intelligent Systems. Some details may have been changed, but… on the whole, it's theirs. This is to be reproduced only with the author's permission, and may not be used for profit. If it is reproduced, this warning must be at the beginning of each document.

* * *

**  
**

**Chapter Six - Blood of Pride**

"Finally..." Erk muttered as he saw the walls of Araphen looming before them. "Civilisation."

"You do not like travelling?" Rei asked, amusement hiding in her voice. "The open sky, the freedom, the.."

"Cold, hard ground and freezing rain?" the mage interrupted, raising a giggle from Florina and Lyn. "Oh, shush you. At least you girls got to sleep in that tent of yours last night."

"It wasn't that great, really. We still had the floor." Rei grinned, trying to cheer the mage up, and thus missed the triumphant glare the pegasus rider gave her.

"Florina's turn in the bed, that's why." Lyn finished reproachfully. She _had_ seen the look, and was starting to wonder if there was something between the two women that she was missing.

"Why don't you just share it?" Sain asked, grinning like an idiot even after Erk had smacked him over the back of the head with his tome. The mage was riding pillion behind the knight, since Wil was riding with Kent and Serra with Lyn. Huey and Petal still carried only a single rider each, being less suitable for doubling up than the horses.

Kent and Wil, however, had gone ahead of the group by starting earlier than the others and moving more quickly. Ventérre would be tired by the effort, but they'd decided it would be better for Araphen to be warned of their approach. With the motley appearance of their band, they almost looked like bandits - and a mistake would have been costly, possibly lethal.

"I don't think that would be advisable" Rei mumbled, carefully studying Petal's neck and the ground in front of her hooves. Rei was fairly certain that Sain knew about her by now, and wasn't sure why he hadn't demanded of the group that she left... but Lyn had said that there were some parts of Lycia where it was acceptable. Kent seemed to be cut from the same mold as her father, but she supposed that it was unreasonable to expect everyone from the same place to be the same.

Then they were under the gate and Lyn, as their leader, was signing the papers to state their presense and reason. Rei noted with interest that the locals who were entering the gate did not have to do the same, and stored it away for future knowledge. It would certainly be useful for moving people into the town if such became neccesary.

Kent met them just inside the gate.

"Good news, Lady Lyndis. The marquis has agreed to lend us a retinue and supplies. The rest of our journey should be much easier."

"That's good to hear. Thankyou, Kent. Has he asked aught in return?" Lyn asked, her wariness not showing in her voice.

"Only that he be given the chance to meet both you and your, ah... 'strange foreigners'. I am sorry for bringing them up if it was wrong, but it is known that the Marquis has a great curiosity about the people of other realms. In fact, it might interest you that..." Kent trailed off as a man approached them. He was garbed as a commoner, but the naked blade in his hand was enough to alert the knights to possible danger.

"Ello, ello. Would any of ya lot be Lindoyse and Roy?" he asked, his voice masked by a false accent. "I's got a message fer ya."

"If you mean the Lady Lyndis, then this is her." Serra told him, reprovingly. "You should show more respect to your betters."

"Roight. Tha's you, then?" the man looked at Lyn, moving closer.

"Yes, I'm Lyndis." she replied, dimounting. "What is it you have to say?"

"Not me, milady," he said, stepping closer again.

"Lyn! Look out!" Florina and Rei both moved at the same time, converging too slowly as he raised his sword to strike. Mani-katti was halfway from its' scabbard, but too slowly as the blade started to fall.

A whistling sound, followed by a meaty thunk presaged a surprised look on the assassin's face as he fell forwards, blade falling harmlessly from nerveless hands to clatter against the cobbles in the sudden silence. Iron-shod hooves stepped slowly closer as Lyn looked up from the body, thanks dying on her lips as she saw her saviour.

"Are you well?" The green-haired man spoke tradertalk for the benefit of the others present, but his eyes were on Lyn.

"Y.. yes. Thankyou, rider."

"Are you sure, Lady Lyndis?" Kent asked, moving his horse to stand beside the swordlady and looking around warily for other threats. The horse-archer looked surprised, and then scowled, turning away.

"Wait," Lyn said loudly, and he turned his head back to look at her, eyebrow raised. "Why did you help me?"

"... I thought I was helping a woman of Sacae. I was mistaken." he told her, gruffly.

"I am. I am from Sacae. I'm Lyn, of the Lorca." she spoke earnestly, moving towards him.

"The Lorca? There were survivors?" The other eyebrow joined the first, and he turns his torso to look at her properly, shortbow still in his left hand. "I am Rath, of the Kutolah."

"A very few, and only I carry the banner still... what brings you to..?" The halfblood was cut off by a loud, patterned drumming that filled the air before being suddenly cut off.

"I will share tea with you later gladly, but I must attend to the castle. It has been attacked, and sounds to have fallen." Rath was suddenly cold and businesslike.

"We'll help. What do you need?" Lyn told him, and he paused before nodding.

"There are three switches, one in each barrack building here in the bailey. Each one needs to be activated in order to open the secret passage that will allow us entry to the castle undetected. Then it is a matter of destroying the invaders."

"We will split into three groups." Rei said, moving forward. At Rath's questioning look, Lyn nodded to say that he should listen.

"One will go to each of the barracks. The first group will contain Lyn, Rath, Florina and myself. The second will consist of Kent, Sain and Wil. Where is Wil?" she looked around, realising that he hadn't returned with Kent.

"He stayed at the castle to liase with the Marquis' quartermaster." Kent told her, and she grimaced.

"Fine. The second group will be the two knights and myself. The third will be Erk, Serra and Dorcas. Rath, how do we get to the barracks from here?"

"The southernmost one is furthest, so I will take that one. The other two are equal distances, one is at the end of this street near the east gate, and one is at the foot of the castle."

"Alright. Dorcas, your group will go to the castle and find the switch in the barracks there. It shouldn't be too hard to find. Rath, where is the passage?"

"In the barracks at the western gate."

"Good. Rally any troops that remain in the barracks and rendevous at the western barrack. When you arrive, Rath will lead the mounted units in followed by the foot units. Dorcas, Erk, and any archers will remain at the barrack to keep the way open and intercept any enemies who escape. Take prisoners if you can, but you should not put yourselves in danger to do so." She looked at Rath for confirmation, and though he looked dubious at the idea of splitting up into such small groups he nodded.

"Alright then. A thousand blessings upon our friends." Lyn nodded to the other groups before mounting up.

"And a thousand curses upon our enemies." Rath finished with a ritual tone before the two Sacaeans took off at an easy run. A moment later Huey took to the air, sky-knight trainee upon his back.

"We will see you there." Dorcas told them, the gruff axeman moving down a side alley after glancing up at the castle.

"What an adventure." Serra squealed before following him, swishing her white robe around her feet to avoid a pile of effluence. Erk gave a long-suffering sigh before following them both at a jog to catch up.

"Right. Lets go, then." Rei mutterered before mounting up again and nudging Petal to a trot. A moment later the knights fell in either side of her.

They were about halfway towards their destination when a red cloak obscured Rei's vision for a moment. The next second, a brunette man was standing in their paths and Petal was rearing back, ready to knock his skull in. He jumped away out of reach and held up his hands to show that they were empty.

"Whoa, whoa, wait a second! I'm not here to fight you! I want to help!" He cried, defensively.

"You're a local? Can you fight?" Rei asked as the two knights levelled lances.

"No and not very well. I'm a... troubleshooter, and to be honest, your side looks a lot more fun than the dead guy. My name's Matthew."

"What kind of trouble do you shoot, Matthew?" Sain asked, warily.

"Well, I've got... light fingers. I can spring a trap or a lock or two."

"Thief's work? We have no need of a criminal. Let us continue, lady Rei." Kent spoke with cold dissaproval. "We should not associate with such creatures."

"Hah! I thought you might say that, sir knight." Matthew bowed to the red-armoured man, mockingly. "So, pray tell, how do you plan to gain access to the barrack? The door is locked, you know, and unlike the others you don't look like you have any fire magic to burn it down, or the captain of the guard to open it with his keys."

"I like him." Sain laughed, putting his lance up. "He won't steer us far wrong, I don't think. It's up to you, Rei. Take a thief?"

"In my homeland.." the advisor said slowly. "We have such people as you, Matthew. They are employed by Daimyou - warlords - not infrequently. We call such people 'ninja'. You have no such master?"

"I'm free as a dicky bird, your ladyship! I'll stay that way, too, even if I'm working for you."

"So, you'll give no oaths... but we need you, I think. Welcome to the team, Matthew." She smiled, and the brunette grinned and stepped up to Petal, letting her sniff his hand and hair before swinging up behind her.

"Oh, don't look so sour, sir knight! There are worse lemons than me to suck on in this town, let me assure you." The thief grinned at Kent, and Rei turned her face away to hide her smile.

"I cannot approve. Still, the choice is yours, Lady Rei. Let us waste no more time," Kent spoke stiffly, before leaning over Ventérre's neck and whispering something to him. The horse broke into a canter from standing, and Sain swore before doing the same.

"He's a bit of a spoilsport, isn't he?" Matthew smirked behind her.

"Please, be quiet and hold on." Rei told him with a sigh before nudging Petal to follow the two knights.

By the time she caught up with them, they had already run down the first two swordsmen. The men were dressed in a similar way to the assassin who had struck at Lyn, but the knights were nearly surrounded by more of the thugs. They were holding them off with their lances, but one had managed to dart in and score a deep wound on Sain's destriers' flank and the horse was starting to flag.

"Up there... I will rejoin you in a moment." Matthew whispered in Rei's ear, making her start, and indicating the roofline. A moment later the thief had vanished, and she glanced back to see a flash of red dissapear onto the rooftops. When she saw what he had, any thoughts about the thief she might have had fled her. Archers were moving up. Two or three on each side, and they were sighting on the knights.

Plucking a knife from one of the sheaths hidden in her cloak, Rei whispered a quick prayer before pushing the green cloth back from herr shoulders and standing up in the stirrups. Sighting carefully, she flung her arm out. The small blade flew truly, sinking into the closest archer's arm and ruining his aim. The arrow released wildly, burying itself in the dirt by a sword-wielding peasant's foot and alerting the cavaliers to the danger.

Kent looked up, scowling, and reached back with his left hand. His right still held the lance, stabbing randomly at the mass of men to strike one in the shoulder and drive them out of sword reach without looking. Suddenly, he stood up and threw something with his left hand.

The arrow flew straight and true, burying itself in the eye of an archer even as Matthew slit the throat of another intent on his target. Suddenly, where there had been six archers arrayed against the knights, there were three still able to fight. Silently, Matthew finished off the one Rei had injured before jumping over the street with the aid of a grapple to land boot-first on another.

The knights continued to strike at the swordsmen, Sain's rapid lance-strikes spearing out to injure and kill, Kent drawing his sword in his off-hand and starting a brutal series of dual-wielding attacks. The horses acquited themselves well, Sain's Lénore killing three at once in one instance and looking put out that she had missed the fourth. For the second time in as many weeks, Rei found herself reminded not to underestimate trained warhorses. The battle went quickly from there, until eventually the remaining swordsmen broke and fled. Matthew resurfaced a moment later and started work on the door even as the knights let the survivors go.

Inside, they were met by a row of arrows trained on them by soldiers in Araphen livery.

"Put those down. We're not enemies." Kent told them, wiping his forehead with the back of his glove and envying Sain's hairband. "Rath has asked that the passage be opened."

When arrows didn't waver, he scowled and continued, "I said put them down. We are Lycian knights, sworn men of Caelin. Surely you cannot doubt our word."

"That's as maybe, but you have to answer to me. I have sworn that the passage will not be opened as long as I live." A large man shouldered his way throught he middle of the row of archers. He wore full battle plate, an infantry lance locked into one steel gauntlet. His helmet was held in the other.

Rei came in behind the two dismounted cavaliers and blinked before squinting up at the big foot knight.

"Who are you? That is very strong armour you have." She asked, stopping between the red and green cavaliers.

"You..." his eyes widened as he saw her and his breath caught sharply. "Men. Kill that girl! His Lordship has demanded her death!"

Without waiting for the archers, he raised his lance and lunged at her. She ducked, and he caught only her cloak, and as his momentum took him past her she saw the back and side of his neck - and the black tattoo there.

"Black Fang!" She exclaimed as Kent moved to shield her from the archers and Sain faced the knight.

"What nonsense. Archers, loose." Still the troop of bowmen held their attack, one or two even lowering their bows. "Men of Araphen, I said, attack!"

"Sir, we can't... it would cause a civil war!" the archer sergeant ventured. "Caelin wouldn't..."

"Forget Caelin. Can you not see that she is a demon? Look at her eyes! Nothing human has that colour."

"What did she mean 'Black Fang', Commander Boole?" The youngest archer present asked, quavering. He was barely fourteen.

"I shall explain later," Boole started, but he was cut off.

"The Black Fang are a league of Biranese assassins." Rei told him, and he dropped his bow. A very raw recruit, she decided.

"But... but.. how can the commander be a member?" the archer stammered. "He's..."

"Only been here a few months, and he already outranks us." The sergeant said coldly. "You've only just joined us, Baret, so I can't expect you to know, but Boole joined us shorlty after the old knight commander dissapeared under mysterious circumstances. Up until then, he was a foot knight in Caelin... or so he's said."

"I've seen him around." Sain offered. "He dissapeared shortly after Lady Madelyn's letter arrived. A couple of people wondered where he'd gone."

"Enough talk!" Boole growled. "If you cowards will be swayed by a demon's treachery and her blackguards, then I will slay it myself!" He lunged with his lance, throwing his helmet to one side. Sain knocked her out of the way, twisting to avoid the deadly tip... and Boole's face was distorted by six arrows. As he fell, the back wall of the barrack ground open with a rumbling sound. When his body clattered to the ground, no-one saw the tattoo fading as each of them turned to look at the red-cloaked thief holding the switch and grinning.

"What?" he asked, innocently.

The retaking of the castle went smoothly from there, the other groups linking with Rei's with forces from the other barracks before storming down the passage and into the throne room. Marquis Araphen was not in evidence, but he was later found locked alone in a dungeon tower richly appointed as a flagellary, looking rather green. It was not until late the following evening that he had the presense of mind to call Lyn and Rei to audience.

When they entered, it was in traditional garb. Rei wore a formal kimono robe, patterned with bamboo shoots and the only presentable clothing she still had. Her only weapons a brace of daggers hidden within her sleeves. Her short hair had been washed and brushed, but without its length - and the presense of a properly trained handmaiden - it was impossible to style in the proper form.

Lyn wore Sacaean celebratory gear, a more elaborate, full-skirted version of her travelling clothes. The teal-hued, sleeveless silk tunic was belted closed with a sash over the waistline of the deep, red skirt. Soft leather gloves hid her hands, the cut simlar to her riding gloves but reaching up almost to her elbows. Mani-katti was sheathed at her side, fixed through her sash with cords. Kent and Sain, wearing their usual armour but polished and cleaned thoroughly flanked the two women, and Rath walked in front of them wearing his own tribal clothing. The sash across his chest and the cap replacing his headscarf were the only concessions to his rank as Captain of the Guard.

The small procession entered the immodestly sized throne room in formal procession. Marquis Araphen sat in his throne, watching impassively as they approached. Rath went to one knee, bowing over it as he reached the foot of the dais, and the women bowed from the waist, Lyn with her arms beside her and Rei with her hands clasped in front of her thighs.

"Lady Lyndis of Caelin and Lady Rei of the Kanhi Isles, my Lord." Rath intoned ritually, and the Marquis stood and stepped forward.

"Thankyou, Rath. You may stand." he waved his hand negligently, and all three stood. If Kent and Sain's continued vigilance irked him, he did not let it show. As Rath straightened, so did the two females, each studying the Marquis carefully even as he examined them both. The Captain of the Guard took up position just behind and to the left of the Marquis' throne.

"You are truly exotic, my Lady." He smiled to Rei. There was something in that smile that she did not like, she decided. The man was like a fat cat.

"However," he continued, "in light of the recent events I fear I cannot give the aid I promised. My castle has been attacked, and it was the name of Lyndis that brought trouble to my doorstep. My pays has been put in danger through your family trouble." He looked straight at the half-blood now, indolent steel in his voice.

"Lord Araphen, you promised..." Kent began, but the marquis cut him off with a wave of his hand.

"I did. However, you failed to inform me of one vital thing. I had no idea that the claimant was so... _tainted_ with the blood of Sacae." The sneer hid the steel, if it had been there at all.

"Why, you..." Sain growled, taking a step forwards until he was silenced by a glare from the captain.

"Your man is ill-disciplined." The marquis noted, and Lyn frowned.

"It will be seen to. However, if you would only..." Kent tried again, but this time it was his mistress who stopped the knight.

"No, Kent. Even if he were willing to give it, I would not accept aid from one who disparages my heritage. We are leaving." As soon as she had stopped speaking, Lyn turned away and walked to the door, not even bothering to use her hands but kicking it open. Rei took one last look at Rath, before following her at a slower, more dignified pace - less out of choice, and more because the kimono restricted her movements. Kent and Sain followed as one.

As the guards outside gingerly closed the doors, Marquis Araphen sunk back into his throne and rested his cheek on his hand.

"Pah. Foolish girl. If she had but shed a single tear, I would have aided her... I will never understand those prideful savages."

"Are those your true thoughts on the people of Sacae, my Lord?" Rath asked from his position, a frown in his tone.

"Oh! Rath, I had forgotten your presense, you are always so unobtrusive. Of course my comments do not reflect on you, you have always served me well."

"I see. It does not matter where we are from, as long as we bow our knee to you."

"Wh... what are you saying?" The marquis stammered, standing to look at his guard.

"You would never understand. My service ends here." Rath took off the beret he wore and put it into the Marquis' hands. The sash joined it, and then the nomad had dissapeared behind the curtain.

* * *

"Of all the..." Lyn growled to herself as she changed into her riding gear. 

"He is a proud man." Rei said simply as she folded the outer layer of her kimono. "In his thinking, there is one way of things, and that is his way. There are many like him in my homeland."

They were standing in the rooms they had been given to spend the night, richly appointed and designed for visiting dignitaries. The wall between the two rooms could be folded and removed to allow the ambassadors to use their rooms as meeting chambers, and that was what the two women had done to talk.

"I feel filthy for even sleeping in the bed he gave me." Lyn was muttering as she roughly forced the skirt into her packs. She was halfway done when Rei caught her wrists and held them still with gentle pressure.

"Become calm, Lyndis. You will damage something. His kind are not worth becoming angry over. We are still in his domain." she spoke softly, and Lyn twisted to look at her. Rei held her gaze, and she noticed that the shorter girls' eyes held her own pain, echoed into eternity. Lyn realised that whatever she had suffered today, it was nothing compared to the possible years of such treatment her companion had suffered.

"I'm sorry. You're right. Thankyou, Rei." She extricated her hands and hugged the smaller girl, who stiffened in her arms with a surprised sound. "We should leave before he decides that he has more to gain from arresting us. I think that he may be a man who thrives on pain, and I wouldn't want you to go through that... or Florina, if he decides to incarcerate the knights as well."

"Thankyou, Lyndis..." Rei squirmed out of her arms, and smiled up at her to hide the twinge of jealousy she felt at the pegasus knight's name.

"Please, call me Lyn. Everyone's calling my Lyndis now... it feels so strange. Like they mean someone else..." the Sacaean looked so lost at that moment that Rei regretted escaping. She had already taken such a risk just by touching her...

"I'm sorry, I didn't realise... I'll call you Lyn. It just sounds improper."

"How so? From everything you've told me, we're of the same social level... both the daughters of minor nobles."

"Nn-nh." Rei shook her head with the sound. "Your grandfather is part of a ruling council. My father does what he's told."

"But in Lycian terms..." Lyn started, uncertainly.

"Maybe. I don't know. But even then, I should be calling you 'Lyndis-san'. At least when other people are around..."

"And you would be 'Rei-san'?" Lyn asked, and the kanhi nodded. "What if we were closer - like clansibs?"

"I don't know that word, but... if we were very close, we might just use names, or even familiar honourifics... but it would be too strange, calling you Licchan." Rei replied, then chuckled a little.

"Licchan?" Lyn gave a horrified laugh, then looked at her friend. "It sounds like a vegetable!" She grinned, and Rei smiled. "Hey, you should do that more often."

"What?" Rei blinked, the smile vanishing into her confusion. "Do what?"

"Smile." The swordswoman told her, and - though it was hard to tell under her tan - she thought that she'd made the young tactician blush. "Ah, you're so cute when you're teased."

"Ah.. er..." Rei stammered, before shaking herself off and ignoring the triumphant voice in the back of her mind. "We should get packed. I'm done, let me help..." she stepped around the smiling plainswoman and took the half-packed skirt out of the saddle bag before folding it quickly over her arm and putting it back carefully.

"That's it. Apart from what I'm wearing, that's pretty much all I unpacked." Lyn turned and reached around her to lace the saddlebag shut. "Lets go."

Before either of them had a chance to move, the door opened and a male voice caughed politely.

"Lyn of the Lorca." The quiet voice came, and as Lyn turned to look at the speaker, Rei moved to one side. "I hope I am not interrupting anything?"

"Nothing, Rath. We were just packing. Is there something I can help you with?" Lyn asked, tilting her head.

"Yes." Rath nodded before stepping forwards. "I would travel with you, for a time. And... I bring an apology. The marquis should not have spoken so." The horse-archer moved forward and took Lyn's wrist, pulling her hand up palm-topwards. He deposited a large sack there, and the plainswoman's eyes widened as she felt the weight and contents.

"This is... gold? It's too much! Is it from the marquis' treasury?"

"No, it is my own. The sum of my wages for working as his guard."

"It is far too much. I cannot accept such a gift..." Lyn tried to return the bag, but Rath stepped away.

"I cannot take back a gift once given." Rath told her, gravely.

"It will be an honour to have you with us, Rath." Rei broke into the conversation, and both of them looked at her sharply. "Lyn, if you cannot accept it as a gift, accept it as an apology as he said, and thanks for opening his eyes." She turned to Rath next, "and thankyou for giving it. The marquis here is a cruel, selfish man. I am glad you have chosen to accompany us. It will make the journey onwards easier, and I am certain that we will enjoy your company. When can you be ready to leave?"

"I am already prepared. I have no wish to spend another night prisoned within stone here."

"That is good, for we were planning to leave as soon as..."

The door opening again cut her off, as Kent and Florina entered. Kent saluted smartly, with the pegasus knight following suit a moment after when she saw that Rath was present.

"The legion is ready to depart, my Lady." Kent said formally before standing to attention.

"Thankyou, Kent. Rei, will you please talk the change to marching order over with him to account for our new companion?" Lyn asked her advisor, who nodded.

"Ah, Lyn..." Florina asked, and Lyn looked at her questioningly.

"Yes, Florina?" she asked as the cavalier and tactitian left the room, already talking in low tones. The two were still not completely at ease in each others' presense, but at least they were being professional about it.

"C.. could I talk to you alone for a moment?" Florina stammered, glancing at Rath.

"Yes, of course. Rath, could you..?" she looked at the nomad, who nodded.

"I'll be in the stables with Stormchaser." he told her, and left. As soon as the door shut, Florina hurried over to Lyn and hugged her.

"Are you alright? I heard from Sain what that man said to you.." The short girl stepped back, holding onto her friend's biceps gently and looking at her face searchingly.

"Thankyou, Florina, but I'm fine. Really." Lyn smiled at her. "I was angry at first, but now I just want to get out of here. How are you holding up?"

"I'm okay... but that Wil is a little scary... he talks so much! And he's always so.. so.." she trailed off, dropping her eyes.

"Overbearing? Overfriendly? Is he harrassing you?" Lyn asked, worried.

"No... n-not like Sain does... but Sain doesn't mean anything by it... Wil is just so.. so... earnest." she shuddered slightly, and Lyn hugged her close and stroked her hair.

"ssh. It's okay. He can be a little intimidating... but he won't hurt you. If he does, just tell me. Now, what's going on with you and Rei?" she pulled back, looking at her friend carefully. "You two are like... almost like... I don't know. Two boys trying to break in a stallion, each one being more foolish when the other outdoes him."

"Ulp!" Florina gulped, turning red. "It.. it's nothing. J-just me being silly.." she hid her face behind her hair.

"Are you sure? I mean, you're my oldest friend... if there's anything upsetting you, I want you to tell me about it."

"I just feel like she's stealing you from me..." The knight said in a small voice.

"Oh, Florina..." Lyn said, a smile in her voice. "You don't have to worry about that." She hugged her again. "Rei is on a quest... and while she has become very dear to me, much as you did so long ago... she will have to leave. Someone like that... you will never lose your place in my heart, Jel'enedra."

"Promise?"

"Promise." Lyn let Florina go after a moment to let her see her smile, then turned to pick up her saddle bags. "Are you packed and ready? Is Huey fed?"

"Yes. Lets go. I want to feel the wind beneath my wings."

Arms linked, Florina carrying Rei's bags, the two girls left the suite and rejoined their group. Within he hour, Araphen city was dropping out of sight behind them.


	7. Siblings Abroad

**Disclaimer: **As ever, Fire Emblem belongs to Nintendo and Intelligent Systems. Even if they do make some decisions I don't agree with… like a silly little side-quest that no true strategist would ever embark on when time is as important as it is to Lyndis' Legion!

* * *

**Chapter 7 - Siblings Abroad**

"What a glorious morning." Wil said as he stepped out of the large tent the men were now sharing when weather gave cause. He was grateful to Rath, he supposed, although the silent man had seemed ill at ease with allowing others to sleep in his tent.

"Grass too wet to light a fire with, mud to trudge through and nowhere to sit?" Matthew muttered good-naturedly. "I prefer the cities, it has to be said. Just think of all those people, crowded together..."

"Yes. All those people, and their accumulated wealth. Isn't that what you were going to say, thief?" Kent's disapproving voice came from behind the brunette, who grinned at Wil and scampered out of the way.

"Oh, I'll admit their purses are attractive, but now that I'm with you I'm sure I'll have no want for food to fill my belly, or jewels to bedeck my ladies."

"Bedecking ladies. That sounds like a fine idea." Sain chuckled from inside. "By the way, has anyone seen our benefactor? You know the one. Face like he'd just bitten a lemon, never says a thing?" Sain's commentary was cut off as something crashed and he yelped in pain. The other three peered back into the tent to see Erk reading one of his spell books and the knight under a pile of armour plating.

"Um, could someone give me a hand?" he asked, sheepishly.

Kent's face, for the umpteenth time, met his palm on the way down.

* * *

"What was that?" Serra asked as they neared a village later that day. 

"Sounds like someone running..." Florina ventured, and everyone paused and looked at each other for a beat before lunging for their weapons. They relaxed only marginally when the small figure broke out of the undergrowth.

"Please, you have to help her!" he said, close to panic and almost clinging to Hunt's bit. The mare looked down her long nose at him, disdainfully, and he let go without looking away.

"Whoa. Slow down. Who are you, and who needs help from what?" Lyn asked, stroking her ruffled horse's mane.

"My sister, Ninian! Some awful men have come and taken her away!" the boy said, taking a flute from his belt and clutching it as though it were a lifeline. "You have to help!"

"Ach, of course we'll help you." Sain said as he moved forward and dismounted, putting a hand on the boy's shoulder. "A knight can't let a girl in danger stay that way!"

Despite his words, he still looked to Lyn for confirmation. An odd relief crossed his face at her near-imperceptible nod.

"Of course we'll help. Everyone! Lunch is on the men who stole Ninian." Lyn told them, a fierce light in her eyes. For a moment, Rei was worried that it was a trick on the part of the boy - but the panic and worry on his face was genuine.

Huey moved forwards, then after sniffing the young bard's hair for a moment he - to everyone's surprise - allowed the boy to ride behind Florina.

When they arrived at the town, a surprising scene greeted them as they rode up, Serra and Erk sliding from Rath and Sain's horses to hang back. Two men - or perhaps a man and a woman, the blonde being fairly androgynous - stood side by side facing six men in black robes. Two of their enemies carried heavy-looking books, while the other three had swords.

"I know your reputation, but I fear that I cannot allow you to follow this path." the blonde was saying in a voice that bordered between masculine and feminine. "The boy cannot possible have committed any wrong."

"Step aside, cleric. This doesn't concern you." one of the tome-carrying men sneered as he stepped forwards. "Tell your boyfriend to put the sword away and we'll be about our business.

"..." The blonde was silent for a moment, then glanced at his redheaded companion who was splitting his attention between the robed men in front and the cavalry arriving behind him.

"Brother, we may be in trouble." The redhead said calmly as he eyed the bard sitting behind Florina.

"Pray tell me that you are not allies of the shaman and his blackguards..." the blonde looked at Lyn, who shook her head.

"Hardly. The boy said something about a sister needing a rescue. Are these the men who took her?" The Sacaean walked her horse forward to stand beside the white-robed cleric.

"I fear it may be so, though I have not seen such a girl. I am Lucius, an Elimine monk. My companion is Lo... Raven. A swordsman on the path of the mercenary."

"I'm Lyn, this is my company. We're also mercenaries, on contract to Caelin. What do you say we team up to kill these bandits? I'm afraid you'll need to come to Caelin with us if you want some of the pay."

"They're annoying me, and Lucius won't abandon the girl. This one's a freebee." Raven's voice was level and calm as before, but a moment later he had jumped forward to bring his huge two-handed blade around to smash through the leftmost swordsman's guard and score a deep gash across his chest.

"Foolishness..." The shaman muttered. "Fine. Come if you will. We can take the boy whenever." With that, he gestured and vanished.

"Lord Heintz..!" The other tome-wielder cried, lunging for the shaman but falling through his image even as it faded. He stood up a moment later, robes swirling and pointed at Raven. "Fine. Kill him, in the name of the Fang!"

As the two remaining swordsmen leapt at Raven, one was struck dead in midair by a flash of light from Lucius' hands. The other brought his sword down on Raven's, but the blade held and the two began a contest of strength.

The tome-wielding man raised his hands, chanting in some ancient, dark tongue;

"Cthulhu in ryleth..." he began, but was cut off as Rei's dagger buried itself in his eye from where Matthew had thrown it. He slipped off Petal's back before running forward to hamstring Raven's opponent. Erk moved forward at the same time and began casting a spell, calling on several air spirits with his eyes closed.

After a good minute, he opened his eyes and pointed south.

"He's in a castle on the other side of those hills. It might be pretty hard to take."

"We can probably take care of it. Lucius, Raven, have you been in the area long? Do you know the castle?"

"Somewhat. Not well. I can take us there." Raven shrugged. "Seems like a lot of trouble though."

"You don't have to fight him if you're scared," Sain taunted, "But no evil wizard will kidnap a girl from her home while I can do anything about it!"

"..." Raven gave the knight a dark look before moving off. "It's this way."

* * *

"A two-fronted attack... is the best way." Rei thought aloud from the protection of a thicket near the approach to the castle. "Florina, Lyn, will you go in from above. Search and rescue only - find Ninian and get out again. The rest of us will mount a frontal attack against the main gate to try and force them to redirect against us." 

"Are you sure? You'll be facing the heavy resistance that way... are you up to it?" Lyn asked, concerned.

"I'll be fine, I've got the knights to protect me, and they'll need me there to direct the battle." Rei smiled reassuringly, and Lyn gave her a measuring look before finally nodding.

"Alright then. How will you signal us when it's time to go in?"

"I'll flash a signal off one of my knives. Three flashes followed by a steady light for two seconds."

"Three short and one long. Understood."

"Make it one second." A third voice interrupted, and both women looked over to see Raven leaning back on a tree and looking up at the sky. "You won't get a lull long enough if the plan works to hold a knife still for two whole seconds. In the middle of a real fight, that's nothing."

"Ah... yes, you're right. Three short and a long, anyway." Rei sounded slightly flustered by his comment. "Thankyou, Raven."

The redhead made no answer, simple pushing off the tree and heading back towards the rest of the army, sheltering behind a ridge.

"Lets go... ne?" Lyn smiled as Rei did a double-take. "Hm. I quite like that... 'ne?' It's got a good feeling."

"Ano.." Rei mumbled under her breath, blushing slightly. "It's a bad habit..."

"Well, I think it's cute." Lyn grinned. "Come on, lets go."

* * *

Rei burst into the throne room at a run, knives in hand. The battle had gone well until she'd given the signal, but she had no idea whether Lyn and Florina had been successful... 

Looking at the carnage in the throne room, it appeared that they had not. Lyn was kneeling - barely - in the middle of the room using the sheathed Mani-Katti as a crutch. Florina lay back against Huey's flank, a hand pressed to her side where blood seeped through. She seemed nearly asleep, and her pegasus wasn't much better off.

Men - or bits of men - were scattered around the room like dismembered rag dolls. There was no sign of Heintz, but a large-boned blonde warrior sat slumped in the throne. At first, Rei took him for another corpse, but his eyes opened and managed to focus on her.

"Hahh... too late... You were only striking at air..." He groaned the words out, then started laughing to himself softly. After a moment, he stopped and called out. "Heintz? Heintz, come to me."

The druid stepped out of the shadows behind the throne - a space so small he couldn't possibly have fitted hidden - and tilted his head.

"Yes, my lord?" He asked, watching Rei and the knights who had entered behind her warily.

"Tell Ursula... that her mistress can't be trusted... she's a good girl, that Ursula... look after her for me, Heintz." The regal-seeming swordsman told his druid, who nodded.

"Of course, Beyard. Now, sleep. Help is coming." The Druid laid hands on the warrior's shoulders, and the warrior nodded even as his breath slowed and stopped. A red glow was visible around the druid, but his body concealed what he was doing. Rei felt paralysed as she tried to move and stop the Druid, as though some force was holding her back.

"It's done. Such wonderful essence... ah, my Lord. I will miss you." The druid murmured before standing and turning to face them. "Goodbye, little girl. We will meet again, though I pray that the Seer is wrong about you." Heintz bowed before stepping back into the shadows and disappearing.

"What's happening up here?!" The high-pitched voice may have been the most welcome sound of the day to Rei as she turned to see Serra charging into the room. "I felt a powerful evil aura, what..? Oh, Saint! Florina!" The cleric cut herself off for a change and rushed across the room to the badly injured Pegasus Knight, casting her staff away as she fell to her knees in front of the other girl and pulled her hand away from the wound only to replace it with her own as a white glow spread across the cleric's body before flowing into the skyrider.

"Lady Lyndis, there's a rider at the gates. He's shouting for Nils." Wil had come in behind Serra and made his report succinctly.

"Thankyou... I'll be right out..." Lyn forced herself to her feet, using her sheathed sword as a crutch, and made way slowly from the room with Rei in tow. The islander wanted to help, but that would mean touching her... and years of cultural indoctrination had taught her that touching was against the rules.

They reached the castle gates and saw the man standing there. He stood beside his white horse, his cloak and shirt the same sky blue as his eyes, clearly the blue of his house insignia. The lining of his cloak, as well as the trimmings on his clothes, matched his flame-red hair. Everything in the way he stood suggested nobility, royalty even.

By contrast, though the girl sleeping in his arms wore blue also, she looked pale and washed-out looking. Where the lordling bore powerful, primary colours, she was softer-edged in pastel hues. Her hair and dress were both a light shade reminiscent of glacial ice an summer lightning. Her skin was pale and waxy to the point she might have been dead if not for the pained wheezing of her breath. Despite her sorry condition, she truly was a beautiful woman.

"NINIAN!" Nils ran out from behind them to throw his arms around the girl. "Wake up! What's wrong with her?" He demanded of the redhead.

"She'll be fine, she's just got a minor fever and a twisted ankles." The man replied.

"Just a fever?!" Nils shrieked. "What if it's the burning sickness, an ice.. a girl like my sister can't survive that!"

"Calm down, Nils. Run and find Serra, she should be done with Florina's injuries by now." Rei told the bard in a calming tone as she moved forward. "My name is Rei. Who are you and are you a friend or bait?"

"Rei!" Lyn sounded amazed. "how can you ask such a thing?"

"Yes, quite. You're far too young to be professionally paranoid yet." Raven said from behind as he arrived behind them. Quickly, he took Ninian and started jogging back into the castle to take her to the cleric.

"Ahem," The blue-clad man coughed as he relinquished his casualty. "My name is Eliwood, Prince of Pherae. Lady Rei is right to ask, but I'm a friend. This girl simply looked in need of rescuing, so I obliged."

"Thankyou, then, Eliwood. I'm Lyn, of the Lorca. Ninian is in good hands. Serra is a cleric and her healing magic powerful." Lyn said as she went to take his horse. "You're beautiful..." se murmured, and the look on Eliwood's face was priceless. Clearly, Rei noted, he was used to people paying him more attention than anything else in the room. She noticed with some surprise, however, that he did not seem put out by it.

"Lord Eliwood," she attracted his attention. "How do you come to be in the area? We are far from the Pheraean border." She continued, distracting him from Lyn who was taking his stallion to where the other riding animals were stabled.

"Actually, I'm meant to be meeting a friend in Kathelet, near here. He's from Ositia, so it's not often we can meet up." He smiled at her charmingly.

'_A real lady-killer, this one…_' Rei thought to herself with a little distaste. Even so, she bowed respectfully.

"Please, forgive my earlier suspicion, but I have been approached by enemies in the guise o friends before." She held the bow until, hesitantly, he returned it.

"You're forgiven, these are unstable times we live in. If it is not impertinent, might I ask from where you come? I do not recognise your mannerisms."

"The far north." Rei sighed. "Please, I have told many people recently and tire of the telling. Pray ask Lady Lyn or Lady Serra."

"It is fine if you do not wish to tell me. I shall wait until you are ready." The redheaded prince smiled that innocent smile again, too good to be true. "Now, forgive me as I must ensure that your beautiful barbarian does not steam my stallions' heart from me." He chuckled to show that he was joking and walked in the same direction Lyn had gone.

'_My beautiful barbarian? Florina would throw a fit!_' Rei thought to herself, then smiled dreamily. '_Mine… it would never happen._' She shook herself off, and went to check on the siblings.


	8. Vortex of Strategy

**Disclaimer:** Nothing recognisable belongs to the author. It all belongs to Nintendo and Intelligent Systems. Some details may have been changed, but… on the whole, it's theirs. This is to be reproduced only with the author's permission, and may not be used for profit. If it is reproduced, this warning must be at the beginning of each document.

* * *

**  
Chapter 8 – Vortex of Strategy**

Two days later, they parted ways with Eliwood at Caelin's border. As the noble went to a village in the east, Lyn's group continued south.

"Two days." Kent's voice broke into Lyn's concentration. She started and looked over at him, trying to work out what he was talking about.

"Pardon?" She asked, turning to the cavalier who had replaced Rei temporarily in the marching order. The Kanhi girl had dropped back and was talking to Matthew in a low voice.

"You looked worried. I presumed about your grandfather. Lord Hausen is a strong man, I am certain that he shall survive the remaining two days until we reach the castle." The crimson shield smiled, reassuringly. At that moment, Lyn wanted nothing more than to wipe that smile off his face with her sword, and she realised that the strange anger rose from guilt. She hadn't been thinking about Hausen at all. It was the redheaded prince from the last few days that occupied her thoughts. Something about him unsettled her. He seemed almost too good to be true… though that wasn't the only thing. '_I've been approached by enemies in the guise of friends before_'. She had been almost out of earshot, and she was fairly sure she hadn't been meant to hear the words, but what had Rei meant? She spoke as though it had been recent enough to still warrant suspicion…

Kent, sensing on some level that she needed to be alone with her thoughts, dropped back in the order to march beside his brother-in-arms. Meanwhile, barely twenty feet behind her, a similar conversation was taking place to her internal monologue.

"I want you to find out everything you can about them, especially why they might be targeting us. Also, I need to know if they have a hand in the Caelin situation." Rei spoke urgently, and after a moment Matthew nodded.

"Alright. Are you sure you don't mean why they're targeting _you_, Kurome-san?" The thief replied, a twinkle in his eye as Rei looked up at him, sharply, shock written across her features. "What? I make it a policy to know everything about the people I'm working for."

"How did you hear that name, Matthew?" She growled in a low voice. "I've never uttered it here."

"It filtered through. I just had to follow your back trail a few days. You've been going to great pains to leave a traceable route behind you, so you shouldn't be so surprised."

"I see." Rei replied, coldly. "May it please you not to call me by it again. The only name I have wish to claim is my own, not my father's. If you were so knowledgeable, you would know that."

"As you wish. I'll be about my business, then." Matthew smiled, and his horse peeled off the column to head towards a walled village not far away. He was as mystified by the Kanhi girl's sudden anger towards him as she was as to whom he had stolen the animal from, for almost the entire party was now mounted – though Wil clung almost comically to Rath as they rode together on the latter's' Stormchaser. The Pheraean boy had all the horse-sense of a mountain wolf, it seemed, and while either Nomad, or even the cavaliers, could have stayed seated with his floundering he seemed to have gravitated towards his polar opposite in the silent horse-archer.

Rei started to urge Petal to take her to the head of the column again, but the soft step of Lucius' new mount behind her made her pause. The monk's position in the marching order was near the back, with his companion, so if he was at the front he must need something. Contrary to her expectations, the blonde did not move past her to Lyn, however. She glanced over at him, forcing her emotions back under control.

"Lady Rei… might I have a word, please?" He asked, his voice soft. "I have seen something hanging over you… a black shadow. Do you have any problems that I could help with, perhaps?"

Something in his voice told her that he was not speaking metaphorically. Rei looked at him carefully, but saw nothing in his serene expression to suggest that he had an agenda of any kind. Perhaps it was simply his effeminate bearing and image, but he felt… safe, in a way no-one had since her mothers' death.

"I suppose I cannot hide it from you… but please, do not tell Lady Lyndis, or any of the others." She asked, quietly.

"I shall take it into priest's confidence, my Lady. Is it a curse? It has the feel of evil magic." The monk's voice was tinged with genuine concern, his blue eyes wells of eternal patience.

"Brother Lucius… I believe what you are sensing is the touch of pain used in the casting of a _geas_ that my father had placed upon me before I left. How much of my tale do you know?" Rei decided to tell him everything he wanted to know. Though he had only travelled with them for a few days, something told her that he had pain of his own that needed to be shared.

"Only that you are come searching for your husband-to-be from the Fire Islands in the north, that you are the daughter of a minor noble, and that you do not fit in with the ideals of your homeland in some manner. This much, Sir Sain has told me. I suspect that he has surmised more, but if so he displays an unusual amount of discretion… for him." Lucius smiled, and Rei couldn't help but smile with him at the thought of the apparently airheaded knight exercising discretion.

"Very well… there is little more to say, as I do not wish to discuss the nature of my… condition. An illness, they called it. That is not what you sense, however…" She paused. "My father knows me, though perhaps not so well as he thinks he does. Before dispatching me upon this quest, he petitioned the Shugenja – the mage-priests of my homeland – to place upon me a spell to ensure that I fulfilled it. Until Nadeshiko Kojiro is found, if I abandon my quest – if I stay in any one place for more than the time it takes to search it, or if I find someone to lay with – the spell shall drive me onwards and away to continue the search."

For a moment, Lucius seemed speechless. Like a whale broaching the surface of an endlessly serene sea for a few brief moments, a look of pity and regret flashed through his eyes before being subsumed.

"Lady Rei… please, let me extend an apology to you on behalf of the Saint. If her servants had been present to witness this… this invasion, it would never have been allowed to happen. That the ones who agreed to cast the spell wear the robes of priests makes it a travesty. Please, allow me to explore this spell when we make camp this evening. There may be something I can do…" He trailed off at the look in her eye.

"No… if I let you remove it… that will just be proving to my father that he was right in setting it. I would rather die or travel forever than return to him, but he is my father, and he must be obeyed. Otherwise, what worth is there in me, if I cannot even do my duty to him? That is why… I must carry on, and find Kojiro, and yes, even marry him… though there are few thoughts more disgusting to my mind." Rei waited for the anger to come as it always did when she allowed her thoughts to turn to her father and fiancé, but the raw emotion never materialised. Looking at Lucius, it was as though his presence drained the negativity from her.

"As you wish…" He paused. "Your sense of duty is admirable, but as one who lost their father as a very young age, I fear that such devotion to one who seems to care for you only as an insurance policy is misplaced. I do not believe that you would find yourself unable to forgive the one who killed him if he were to be felled." He fell silent for a while as they both mulled over their words.

"I… perhaps. Thankyou, Brother Lucius. You have a way of saying the right things to make me think." Rei told him, eventually, and he nodded, taking it as the plea to be alone that it was. He dropped back to return to his place beside Raven, though the redhead ignored him for the most part, simply looking up to see who was approaching him.

This time, Rei made it to the front of the line, falling into place beside Lyn and barely escaping Serra, who apparently wanted to learn more about 'her' homeland. If there was anything Rei regretted from the last fortnight, it had been mistaking the identity of that Cleric. She was now utterly convinced that she was indeed some long-lost relative of Rei's intended.

"Lady…" Rei started, then looked around and dropped her voice so they wouldn't be overheard. "Lyn, is everything alright..? You've looked worried since the siblings joined us…"

"I'm fine. Really." There was a note in the swordlady's voice that hadn't been there before, however, and it sounded distressingly like distrust. They rode in silence for a minute or so then both started speaking at the same time.

"Rei, why…"

"Lyn, I…"

"You first." Rei said, lowering her head in something that felt worryingly like subservience.

"Rei, why didn't you tell me about the assassins? If you're being targeted, I want to be able to protect you… You're handy with those knives, but…" The swordswoman trailed off, unable to meet her tactician's eyes.

"I didn't want to burden you. There's so much else to worry you… your grandfather, Florina, your vengeance… looking after everyone. I don't even know why the Black Fang are after me. There's nothing you can do to help me, so…" Rei looked up, trying to catch Lyn's gaze again.

"I see…" Lyn looked back, and met her eyes. "Please, though… in the future, don't hide these things from me. Even if it's something I can't help with… I'm your friend, right? On the plains, we have a saying. 'A trouble shared is a trouble halved'. Won't you let me share your troubles?"

"I…" It was Rei's turn to look away. There were so many things… "I'll tell you. I promise. When we're done with this… what will you do? Stay with Lord Hausen?"

"I…" Before she could say what she would do, a light blue blur flashed in the corner of their vision as Ninian leaped from her horse with the agility of an air spirit, launching herself at Lyn and knocking her from Hunt's back mere seconds before a huge bolt, maybe two feet long, flashed through the space she was going to be and buried itself at Ninian's horse's feet. The surprisingly placid animal merely blinked at the enormous shaft that had almost ended its life and stepped over it, wandering almost two feet before Nils could catch its' reins and hold it steady next to his own.

"What was that? Ninian, please, let me up?" Lyn asked after she'd caught her breath. The dancer was lying on top of her, pinning her to the ground, and was clearly heavier than she looked.

"Yes… I'm sorry… I sensed the danger and did not know how else to prevent it." The dancer rolled off, and Lyn helped her up as she stood, the pastel-hued girl's twisted ankle stopping her standing on her own. Meanwhile, Rei scanned the horizon for the source of the bolt. She saw it after a few moments, a huge crossbow-like Ballista set up on top of a rocky outcropping on the hills in front of them.

"Everyone, spread out. Kent, Sain, Rath, I want you to find a way around that hill to the left. Florina, take Serra and get up there, take that ballista out. Raven and Lucius, take Ninian and Nils and take cover in that forest. Protect them. Everyone else, with Lyn, this way." She didn't wait for Lyn to finish helping the dancer back on her horse before nudging Petal to take them around to the right at a canter. She wasted no time wishing that Erk was more adept at offensive air magic, and able to strike down the archer from where he now clung to his horse. He'd be unable to fight mounted – but that was true of most of her group. She would, however, have preferred if Huey would deign to carry a male other than Nils. She would have felt a lot better if it had been Wil flying with the Pegasus knight, but she supposed she would have to make do with taking the ballista out of action rather than commandeering it for the moment.

Hoofbeats behind her told her of the others following as Lyn, Wil riding pillion, caught up and then started to draw ahead, having already seen their target. For a moment, Rei was dismayed at the regiment of pikemen that faces them. There were few things worse to charge with horses than the bristling array of spears.

Wil slid off the back, stringing his bow in seconds and turning to loose an arrow into the leader of the regiment, even as Lyn continued her charge, drawing the Mani Katti and holding it above her head.

"Eya! Eya! Kele, kele, kele!" The Sacaean cried as she charged, standing up in the stirrups and urging her horse to keep moving even though it wanted to baulk at the deadly points set against it. A second arrow followed the first, and a hole suddenly opened. Turning aside at the last moment, Lyn hung sideways off her horse to sweep her blade across the line of men, cutting through armour and pike-haft equally. Charging on foot, having dismounted beside Wil, Dorcas and Erk hit the squadron at the same time, axe and flame working in terrifying concert to tear the regiment to shreds even as Lyn wheeled Hunt around and dismounted, charging the side of the regiment on foot as their ranks broke.

* * *

"Lady Lyndis… I am afraid that this is not good news." Kent spoke softly, for Lyn and Rei's ears only. They were standing in the castle hall that, until recently, had been host to Captain Yogi's division of the Caelin army, consisting of a regiment of pikemen, two ballista, and a five-strong unit of cavaliers. "These men were not bandits or assassins, they were soldiers of Caelin. I knew some of the men I killed today. You are certain of Captain Yogi's words?" 

"Completely." Lyn nodded. "He knew who I was, and who you were, and he still attacked us. Why would he do such a thing?"

"Because he was ordered to." The pleasant voice interrupted them as Matthew appeared from nowhere as was his wont. He looked tired, like he'd done just as much work as any of the fighters that day. "He was sent here to kill or apprehend the pretender to the throne calling herself Lyndis of Caelin, and her two treacherous knights." He paused. "It gets worse. I fed a hungry innkeeper some coin and he told me that Lord Hausen really is ill. The rumour is, though, that it's not a natural illness. He's being poisoned. Until he recovers, a certain noble has valiantly stepped into his position."

"Lord Lundgren." Lyn guessed. "My granduncle."

"Indeed. That's not all, however. Mercenaries have been hired, weapons bought from out-state. Militia have been ordered to train for twice as long as normal, and every day rather than one a week. Trees have been being felled to make ballista, bows and spears." Matthew looked to Rei to draw the obvious conclusion.

"Caelin is preparing to go to war." The Kanhi girl said, her throat going dry. "But against whom? Caelin has no external borders… unless…" She trailed off.

"Unless what? Lady Rei, what is it?" Kent asked, frowning. He couldn't think of any reason for Caelin to prepare such a thing.

"Unless Caelin are going to war against Lycia itself." Rei forced herself to say after swallowing. "But what do they have to gain from such a thing..? Matthew, did you find out anything else? Any reason for this? Why now?"

"Nothing. Not a thing's left the castle since the orders were given." The thief shook his head, helplessly. "Sorry. I might be able to learn more if I went to the castle, but I'm not much faster alone than the group is."

"It's alright. Thankyou, Matthew, you've done well. Get some food into you and get some sleep." Lyn told him, pushing the haggard-looking thief towards the other end of the hall where the siblings and clerics were taking care of the victual. "We should eat as well. I need to think about this some…"

As they approached the tables, the voices of the two priestly members of their group cut into their thoughts.

"So just stay away from me, got it?" Serra was telling Lucius, threateningly.

"Um… okay… but…" Lucius stammered, clearly overwhelmed by the vocal female.

"Well? What is it? Spit it out already!" Serra demanded, putting some of the brown stew into a bowl with bread and giving it to Rei without even looking at her. Lucius served Kent mechanically, even as he stuttered his response.

"Well… you see… I'm n-not just a cleric… I'm a m-monk, s-so you s-see…" He muttered, looking at the ground and blushing slightly.

"WHAT?!" Serra's shriek turned every head in the hall as she dropped her ladle into the stew. "But… but… but… to be a monk, don't you have to be a… well… a guy?"

At that point, two things happened. Sain, sitting at a nearby table, blushed to the roots of his hair and made an excuse to rush out of the room, and Lucius found his willpower as Raven started moving towards them.

"Yes." He said firmly, looking Serra in the eye. "Yes, you do."

That was when the cleric fainted. All in all, Rei decided as she went to sit down with her stew next to Florina, who was talking quietly to Ninian, it had been a day of varied results. Miraculously, no-one had suffered any injuries Serra had been unable to heal during the battle, she had unburdened herself of some uncomfortable secrets, and she would have a night free of escaping the Cleric's endless questions. On the other hand, she realised that she needed to think about her father – it couldn't be put off forever – and also the situation here in Caelin. If the other Lycian states decided to interfere, Lyn and the rest of the group would have no chance to make it through to see Lundgren or the castle. Perhaps more worrying was the burgeoning threat of war. Caelin was not the strongest state – that, as ever, was reserved for Ositia – but it wasn't as small as Kathelet or Badon. If any of the other states were making the same preparations, it could easily turn into a bloody affair that would spread death and destruction across the continent.


	9. A Grim Reunion

**Disclaimer:** Nothing recognisable belongs to the author. It all belongs to Nintendo and Intelligent Systems. Some details may have been changed, but… on the whole, it's theirs. This is to be reproduced only with the author's permission, and may not be used for profit. If it is reproduced, this warning must be at the beginning of each document.

* * *

**Chapter 9 – A Grim Reunion**

"You're sure we can trust him..?" Rei asked for the third time as she stood with Lyn on the freezing cobbles outside Kathelet, rubbing her arms to keep warm. The weather had taken a turn for the worse over the past day and a half since the battle against Yogi, and she was glad to have left most of the legion in the foot knight's castle. Only Kent and Sain stood with them, holding their horses by the bit.

"Yes, I'm sure, Rei. I don't understand why you don't like him." Lyn sighed. "He seems nice enough, and he is helping us."

"I suppose so." Rei trailed off as she saw him approaching, a grizzled-looking older man leading a horse beside him and wearing full armour. "Something about him just gets on my nerves." She finished quietly just before the two Pheraeans came into earshot.

"Wait here a moment, please, Marcus. I did say you don't need to come out with me." Eliwood told the older cavalier before moving towards the group. The horseman gave a long-suffering sigh and reached his other hand over to take Eliwood's horse and waited as asked.

"Eliwood! Do you have news?" Lyn asked, meeting him half-way. Rei moved forward at the same time, standing just behind her friend's shoulder.

"Indeed. Caelin's neighbours have all agreed to stay neutral in this dispute. Unfortunately, this means I can't help you either." Eliwood smiled, though he looked a little worried about them. Rei tried not to think uncharitable thoughts, but part of her couldn't help but think he only looked worried because it would be on his head if they did fail.

"I'm sure we'll be fine. You've done more than enough already." Lyn mirrored the smile, hiding any unease she might have felt expertly. She was the very picture of confidence.

"Well. Good luck. I'm sure you'll win. Invite me to the celebration?" The redhead's smile turned into a grin that must have broken more than a few hearts.

"Haha! Of course." Lyn grinned back, and Rei let herself smile as well - though she realised that the strange pang she felt was dangerously like the jealousy Florina had been displaying since joining the group.

"I'll see you then. Good luck." Eliwood held out his hand, turning and walking back to Marcus after Lyn had shaken it. As the two left, Lyn looked back over at Kent and Sain.

"Right. Lets head back. What's the fastest route to the castle? We've lost so much time over this..." She asked.

"From here, it would be directly south, through Commander Yogi's lands and then into General Eagler's estate." Kent said after a moment's thought. "Eagler should be sympathetic, but he has family at the castle... we may have to fight our way through."

"How much time will we lose if we avoid him?" Rei asked, mounting up.

"Two, maybe three days. If Lord Hausen's as ill as the rumours say, it could be the difference between life and death for him." The knight replied, and Rei suppressed the urge to curse.

"Alright. Lets go, then. Every minute counts." She waited a moment as the others mounted up and turned their horses. "Lyn, you're faster than the rest of us. Go on ahead, don't wait up. Ideally we want the Legion ready to travel by the time the rest of us arrive."

"Alright. Try not to get too far behind." Lyn nodded, wheeling Hunt around. "Kele." She murmured to the horse, the Sacaean word for run. The mare broke into a ground-eating canter almost immediately, Lyn crouching low over her neck. Rei and the Cavaliers turned their own horses about and urged them to move on as well, though as Rei had said, their chargers were bred to carry the weight of an armoured knight, not run long-distance. Like Petal, they would cover the ground more quickly at a brisk walk than a forced canter that would require them to rest more often.

When they arrived, Lyn had indeed got the whole force ready to move. If Serra was a little dreamier than normal, anyone who noticed was too busy being glad she was quiet for a change to notice. Erk seemed almost happy, and considering that he was riding beside her, that was a miracle! Lucius seemed subdued, coughing occasionally and riding in silence beside Raven, who looked across at him occasionally with a worried expression when he thought the monk wasn't looking.

* * *

After four hours riding, a line of low, rocky hills came into view. The temperature had continued to fall as they passed through the reaches of the Eagler Estate, and now thin tendrils of fog were writhing across the ground almost as though they were alive. 

As the Legion approached the gap in the ridge the road ran through, a large, lone figure stepped out of the rocks into the middle of the path. He wore heavy plate armour and carried a spear... as they approached, he set it against them and removed his helmet.

"Bring my Lyndis." The man demanded, his voice several degrees below freezing. "Bring me the one who claims to be Madelyn's daughter."

"Who is that?" Lyn asked quietly, signalling for the army to stop where they were.

"That's... General Wallace!" Sain exclaimed, urging his horse forward. "General! You don't mean to say you believe Lundgren's lies! He's poisoning the Marquess!" He declared loud enough for half the estate to hear him.

"I will judge for myself. Bring my Lyndis!" Wallace told him, firmly, voice still icy.

"What are your intentions towards her?" Kent asked, moving forwards. "If you mean to harm her, we'll have to stop you."

"You? Ha hah! You've got a long way to go yet. If I do not like the look of her, I will take her." Wallace told him, levelling his spear two-handed.

"Enough. I am Lyndis. I've had just about enough of your foolish postering, so either get out of the way or prepare to be gotten out of the way." She told him, eyes flashing as she dismounted and walked up in front of the two knights, her hand on the Mani Katti's hilt. Wallace stared at her for a moment, before meeting her eyes. Suddenly, his expression softened and he smiled.

"Such beautiful eyes..." He murmured, and three mouths fell open - Lyn's, Rei's, and Florina's. "No-one with eyes as clear as yours is a deceiver." Wallace finished, then nodded. "And such spirit... I like you, girl. Hah! Why, yes, I think I'll even join your little band of mercenaries." The spear tip rose, span once, then the butt end slammed into the ground as the knight stood to attention.

"What? Why are you..?" Rei stammered, moving forward. Wallace's eyes flicked over to the islander, and there was suddenly a strangely tender look in his eyes.

"This old warrior's sworn himself to Caelin, Kanhi-dono. I'd never let a usurper on the throne, even if I am meant to be sowing seeds. Lets waste no more time on talking. Together, we ride!" Turning, he whistled, and a moment later a huge, shaggy warhorse stepped out of the rocks. The beast was easily half as tall again as either Kent or Sain's thirteen hand destriers, and wore heavy barding almost as thick as Wallace's armour. It didn't even flinch as the massive man swung up onto its' back. Within moments, the army was on the move again.

As the fog rolled in, Rei ordered torches lit and sent Wil and Matthew ahead on foot as scouts. Within an hour, it was thick enough to slow their progress almost to a halt as they were hard-pressed to see a bowshot in front of their faces. The fog created strange echoes, and shapes started to appear in it, faint and indistinct. It seemed that at any moment, they could have been passing through a military camp... the whole Legion remained silent, the only sounds the soft clop of hooves on macadam and the occasional clink of armour or tack.

Suddenly, an eddy of wind cleared a small patch of fog for the barest of moments, revealing that they were mere yards from Eagler's chateau. Unfortunatly, Rei and the Legion were not the only ones to notice this. A cry went up in the castle, and after a few moments a full calvacade rode forth, led by a distinguished-looking cavalier wearing ornate armour similar to that of Eliwood's guard, Marcus.

"General Eagler..." Sain muttered, and Rei sighed. She'd been hoping to avoid confrontation entirely.

Strangely, from the look on Eagler's face as he drew up his battle-line, so had the paladin. He even gave Rei time to organise Lyndis' Legion into formation, Wil, Erk, Lucius and Serra, Kent and Sain at the back and Wallace, Raven, Dorcas and Lyn in the front rank. The half-box wasn't ideal, but without more melee warriors there weren't enough of them to form a full square. Rei just hoped that Eagler wouldn't call on any troops he had hidden in the fog behind them.

"You too, Cleod?" Eagler said, riding forward of his front rank. "I'd hoped it wouldn't come to this..."

"If your course is set, Ernest, then at least let mine be the blow that finishes you." Wallace replied, gruffly. "Who is it?"

"Sara... Lundgren has her. I'm sorry, old friend." Eagler told him, and set his lance. "It was good, you know. I enjoyed it while it lasted..."

With those words, the Paladin led the last charge of the First Caelin Mounted.

As promised, the last thing Ernest Eagler saw was Cleod Wallace's lance as it pierced his visor.

* * *

"The way is clear, now. Tomorrow morning, we should be at the foot of Roland's Chair. Castle Caelin is on the other side of the mountain." Kent said, stiffly. The fog had lifted the moment they had left Eagler's estate, suggesting that it had been a magical construct rather than any natural weather patterrn. Erk agreed with the concept, though he knew no spells powerful enough to cover that large an area. 

"You don't have to hide it, Kent..." Lyn spoke softly, for his ears only. "I know that you must be as affected by Eagler's death as Sain and Wallace... from what I understand, you were close."

"When we were new to the Knights, Eagler was our captain. He was honest, steadfast, honourable, loyal... the perfect knight. All of us strove to be like him. He was... no. It's not my place to even try and describe him. You should ask General Wallace. I didn't know before, but... they were shieldmates. I don't know how long for, or when it started, but..." The knight trailed off, looking away. "It's my duty to stay strong. That way... the others can mourn him without guilt. It's what General Eagler taught us... one man will always have to take the fall for the others, since it is the only right thing to do. Today... it was General Eagler's turn. I think... he went without regrets."

"I see..." Lyn whispered, half to herself. She had never seen it in that light. "I just saw that... you had lost a father-figure... I didn't think about what his feelings might have been. But even so... it's alright to mourn. You don't always have to be the strong one. I'm here for that. So are the others." She paused. "Go to them, Kent. Go, mourn with the others." She leaned forward and whispered to Ventérre. The horse flicked its' ears and looked at her, before turning against its' riders' will to walk back to where Sain and Wallace were riding in silence beside each other. When he saw them riding so close, the walls Kent had built against his emotions started to crack for the first time in years. Seeing Eaglers' helmet on the saddle horn of Wallace' horse was the final straw, and tears began sliding gently down his cheeks.

* * *

Author's Note: Some of you may have noticed that I've been using Mercedes' Lackey's _Shin'a'in_ language in place of trying to come up with anything new. It just didn't seem right to me that Lyn, who grew up on the plains among plainsmen, would speak nothing but purest english! As I use words, I'll try and remember to post translations at the end of each chapter. For now, 'Eya' (from last chapter) is a battlecry, and 'Kele' literally means 'Go onwards'. From back in chapter six, 'Jel'enedra' translates as 'little sister'. 


	10. The Distant Plains

**Disclaimer:** Nothing recognisable belongs to the author. It all belongs to Nintendo and Intelligent Systems. Some details may have been changed, but… on the whole, it's theirs. This is to be reproduced only with the author's permission, and may not be used for profit. If it is reproduced, this warning must be at the beginning of each document.

* * *

**Chapter 10 - The Distant Plains**

While most of the camp slept, Rei lay awake in the tent she was now sharing with Lyn alone. They had taken supplies from Yogi's estate, including several campaign tents, and now they had enough to sleep two to a tent. It wasn't the sudden loneliness that was keeping the islander awake, however.

Tomorrow would be the final battle, and she knew that there had to be a way to get everyone to the castle without being slaughtered by the standing army in the barracks that stood directly in their path. There was a way around, but if Lundgren had destroyed the bridges south of the river it would be impassable.

Quietly, she swung her legs out of bed and moved over to the low table in the centre of the tent that held Kent's sketch-map of the area around the castle. Clearly, they couldn't go straight over Roland's Chair. The mountain was nigh impassable, and certainly impossible to cross with horses. The only other way around was five days trek around the western end of the range the Chair stood at the eastern end of. Which left the obvious route, east, along the river until they reached Caelin Town, then south or west from the town. South would mean crossing the river on the other meander, but west would involve marching through the barracks where most of the standing army - swollen by Lundgren's war preparations - was stationed.

A noise made her look up, and she saw that Florina was standing in the flap. Rei signalled for silence, then moved over, making pushing motions to indicate that Florina should step outside.

"Sorry, but Lyn's asleep..." She told the Pegasus Knight in a soft voice once they were outside.

"That's alright." Florina replied, unusually nervous, considering that she was talking to a single female. "It was... you I was looking for."

"Oh? Is something the matter?" Rei asked, tilting her head. Their unconcious - on Rei's part - rivalry for Lyn's attention had died down since Araphen, but the two women still weren't friends.

"I... Um... Sain told me about you..." Florina started, and Rei hid a frown. "Or... he tried... you can... um... probably guess how that ended..." The knight seemed embarassed, but Rei smiled to show that she understood.

"I see. What did he tell you?" She asked, though she feared she already knew the answer.

"That you... um... your... 'illness'... you..." The knight blushed, suddenly. "Prefer... um..." She ran out of steam, unable to say it.

"Ah. Yes." Rei nodded. It was as she'd feared. "Please, don't tell anyone... especially not Lyn. I don't know how she might react... you don't seem disgusted... why..?"

"It's not unusual, in Ilia..." Florina suddenly seemed to relax, the tension going out of her now that she'd asked the question. "It's a harsh place, and people find comfort where they can. Most Ilian women are tough, brave, and strong, so..."

"Most, Dame Florina?" The new voice made them both look over to where the speaker stood on the shadow of a tent. Both of them knew who it was, since of all the members of the army, only Ninian had a voice with the same soft, shyly confident quality. The way the words were spoken suggested that 'most' was an understatement.

"Oh! Um... Ninian... you know... you don't have to call me that... just Florina..." She paused. "Wait.. you... you know Ilia?"

"Yes... the white mountains, always covered in snow... and... I was, um... born there." The confidence had fled in the dancer's voice, and Rei smiled to herself and slipped back into the tent, unnoticed, to let the two women talk more openly.

"Y-you were? That means... we're from the same place, then... That's funny... I feel so much closer to you now... do you want to be friends?" Florina managed a shy smile, and Ninian's answering smile brought a shine to her eyes.

"Yes... I'd like that... um.. Nils is sleeping in Erk's tent... since he wanted to try and learn magic... so... if you wanted to... you could stay in my tent, tonight, instead of being alone... if you wanted to talk more..."

"I'd... I'd like that..."

The next morning, Rei woke with Lyn's hand on her shoulder. The younger girl was looking down at her intently, and Rei felt her breath catch at the sight of those beautiful eyes, clouded as they were with worry.

"It's nearly time..." Lyn told her, quietly. "Today... it'll all be over, one way or the other."

"We'll be fine, Lyn..." She reached up to cover the swordswoman's hand with her own, daring the contact only because her sleep-fuddled brain told her to.

"I'm glad you're so confident." Lyn smiled, before standing and looking away. "I don't... I don't know. It feels like I'm betraying someone..." Her voice had become uncertain, wavering.

"Lord Lundgren is your blood-relative. That means something to you, even if he has made you his enemy." Rei replied, standing. "You should not feel that you are betraying him... since he is the betrayer." She paused, then a daring thought came to her. Normally, she would never have dreamed of what she was now considering offering. "I think... if you finished your preparations for battle, it might calm you somewhat." Stepping towards Lyn, she placed her hands on her robed shoulders before gathering the heavy mass of her unbound hair. "In my homeland, it is customary for a warrior to braid their hair back if it is long before a battle. Usually, they do this themselves, or have a close friend or confidante help them... someone they've sworn their life to in the heat of battle, or a close sibling or loved one." She let her hands falls slowly away from the green locks as Lyn stood there, head bowed, unmoving. "Please... grant me that honour, Lyn?" She asked, finally, afraid that she'd gone too far.

"Rei... I..." Lyn paused, as though uncertain of what to say. "I would be honoured... to have you help me." She paused again, but didn't turn. "Please... lend me your strength, one more time..."

"It's yours. Whenever you ask it." Rei promised, and gathered Lyn's hair again, starting the complex process of tying it into a warrior's braid.

When they finally stepped outside, Matthew was loitering around toying with a dagger - though not one of Rei's, for a change - Erk was reading, and Nils was peering over his shoulder. Ninian sat alone, staring out into the forest, while Kent and Sain rubbed their horses down and checked all their equipment. Wallace was moving among the Legion, talking to each person and giving them prep talks to increase their confidence. Watching him, an idea started to form in Rei's mind...

"Sir Kent, could I talk to you for a moment?" She asked, and the cavalier jogged over, his armour clanking.

"Yes, Lady Rei?" He asked, stopping about two feet away.

"Would you say that General Wallace is known and loved by the people of Caelin as well as he is here, amongst Lyndis' Legion?" She asked, thoughtfully.

"Yes... why do you ask?" The knight replied, guardedly.

"Would they follow him?" She continued, watching the massive man clap Wil on the shoulder almost crushingly.

"I... think so." Understanding finally dawned. "You want to take General Wallace and Lady Lyndis to the barracks and try to win them over?" Kent sounded incredulous. "But... they can be avoided if we go south... it's too much of a risk."

At that moment, Florina landed near them, back from her scouting mission. Dismounting, she hurried over to the trio, out of breath.

"It's as you were worried about... Lundgren's had the bridges over the river south of Caelin Town destroyed. There's no way over." The sky-rider reported.

"Thankyou, Florina... see to Huey, you've got time, and take a chance to catch your breath." Rei told her, and she nodded before going back to her pegasus. "Kent, can you bring General Wallace over, please, then tell everyone to take a break? I want you to follow us after half a mark."

"I still don't think it's a good idea... but you're the strategist." Kent replied, before going to fetch the older knight.

Rei explained her plan as they rode, and, unlike Kent he seemed to agree with the plan, giving a great belly-laugh as he approved of the audacity of it. Two hours later, and they had arrived, skirting the outside of the town with only a single encounter with a local. A strange, almost ferrety old lady wearing dark robes had appeared in front of them on the road, demanding that they slow down.

"The shining blade spun by its mistress in green strikes truly when combined with the ring of might." The old woman had said cryptically, pressing something into Lyn's hand before vanishing into the alleyways. Opening her hand, Lyn had found a ring there, perfectly fitted for her and set with a red gem. On Rei's advice, she'd put the ring on, and instantly felt a little stronger. Though she didn't want to become reliant on magic items such as this, Rei pointed out that it was a spirit's gift, and to not use it at least this once would be an unwise insult.

Though the canton was preparing for war, security at the barracks was lax. While they wouldn't have been able to get the whole legion past it, the three riders were able to get within ten yards of the outer wall before they were stopped. At their demands, the commanding officer, a Captain Vengre, came forth to speak to them.

"Captain Vengre. This is not acceptable." Wallace said, using the same cold tone he had used when facing down the entirety of Lyndis' Legion north of the Eagler estate. "You treat myself and my companions as though we were enemies while a pretender to the throne is at large."

"I'm sorry, sir, but Lord Lundgren has decreed that no-one approach the castle... even you, or your..." Vengre protested weakly, trailing off as he took a proper look at Rei. Wallace looked down at him - even if he'd been afoot, he would have towered over the little infantry captain, but mounted he was almost twice Vengre's height.

"Concentrate, Vengre. " Wallace said, sounding slightly impatient.

"But... your... that's... I thought she was dead..." Vengre stammered, still watching Rei like he expected her to grow wings.

"Vengre, this is Lady Rei of the Kanhi Isles, a tactitian. She is _not_ my lady wife!" Wallace growled, and Rei blinked. "Now if you're finished being supertitious, let me pass. I have grave news regarding the pretender." Wallace told him. "I have seen Lundgren's imposter for myself, and know that she is no deciever. Lundgren himself is the one who pretends to the throne."

"You're saying that it's a lie? That Lord Hausen's illness is false, and that the pretender from the plains is real?" Vengre frowned. "Even coming from you, General Wallace, I find that hard to countenance."

"Captain..." Lyn spoke up, nudging Hunt around Wallace's huge warsteed and coming into Vengre's eyeline for the first time. "If I thought there was any doubt of the truth of my identity, I would not dare to stand before you now. I have never once claimed the throne... I... I just want to see my Grandfather." She focussed those clear, beautiful Caelin eyes on Vengre, who met them for a whole five seconds before looking away. "Please... even if you don't believe me... just let me through to the castle..."

"I can't do that, mamzel..." Vengre said, unable to meet her eyes. "You would be slaughtered before you reached the gates. I'll lend you a regiment, two ballista and a unit of archers... they should get you through the gate, at least." He paused. "Good luck, Lady Lyndis, General Wallace. You'll need it."

"Thankyou, Captain Vengre. We'll need the units ready in half an hour, if you can. We do have a small force, but your units will be a great help." Wallace dismounted and clapped the man on the shoulder before turning him around and sending him back towards his barracks.

"Thank the spirits..." Rei whispered once he was gone, slumping in her saddle. "I almost thought we'd failed..."

"We can't fail. We have so much left to do..." Lyn smiled at her, reaching a hand over to rest on her arm, comforting. The nomad was gratified when Rei didn't flinch away as she usually did when threatened with physical contact.

"You're right. The others should be here soon... then... it'll be over. Lady Lyn, I..." Rei paused, looking away.

"It's okay to be scared, Rei. Remember, what you said to me this morning..." Lyn smiled. "I know you worry about everyone. That you feel like your decisions are the ones that put everyone in danger... but it's not true. We all know why we're here, and it's our choice." The nomad paused, moving her horse slightly closer and taking Rei's hand in her own. "Please... this is the final battle, so... don't be afraid."

"I'm sorry, Lyn..." Rei whispered back. "I just wish... I could do more. I wish I could fight by your side, properly, not just taking opportunities and getting in the way..."

"You've never gotten in my way, Rei." came the reply. "Not once. You're one of the only two people I'd feel comfortable fighting back to back with, without having to worry about cutting you or tripping."

"Thankyou..." Rei smiled, straightening. "How do you always know... exactly the right thing to say?"

"I don't... I just hope that what I'm saying is right." Lyn returned the smile, and they settled down to wait for the others.

The battle had gone smoothly, but there was no sign of Lundgren at the castle walls or gates. While Wallace and the others saw to the undoing of the lord's work, Lyn and Rei raced through the castle, searching for Lundgren or his brother.

They found the Lord General, usurper to the Caelin throne, standing at the entrance to an inner courtyard. Beyond his armoured form, they could see an expanse of green, broken only by the colours of flowers. A garden.

"You made it here. I'm dissapointed. The men should have lasted longer." He turned to face them, a foot-lance in his hand. "You've entered my realm without my permission, claimed to be blood-kin despite the vile mongrel in your veins, corrupted my loyal men with your base ways and now you dare to challenge my right. Why those bandits couldn't have finished the job properly, I don't know, but I suppose it just goes to show that you have to do everything yourself if you want it done right."

"The bandits... you hired them? You killed them?" Lyn asked, stunned and incredulous. "I thought it was a random attack... but this..." The rage started to colour her voice. "You killed them... my parents... my family... my tribe... and now you're trying to kill my grandfather... your own brother." Lyn drew her sword, dropping into a stance. "Unforgivable... Oathbreaker! Kinslayer! You have earned your death!" With that, she leaped forwards, sword flashing up and under the lance to score a gash across Lundgren's chest, opening his thick armour as though it were nothing. Stepping back out of her reach, the general stabbed with his lance, but Lyn twisted, evading each attack with deadly grace... until the general brought his left hand around, catching her in the shoulder with one massive, spiked fist. With a crack of bone, Lyn cried out and crumpled to the floor.

"See, Wiseman? You were right to trust me." Lundgren growled intot he darkness, and something made Rei turn just in time to avoid a lunging dagger from the darkness. Her attacker wore black robes, similar to those of the Fang shaman, Heintz. His features were impossible to make out under his hood, but for one; his eyes glowed, golden, like some great hunting cat.

"Finish it, this distraction is costly." The golden-eyed Wiseman told him, attackin Rei again. "Deal with the Islander as well." Rei deflected another strike with her fighting dagger, reaching into her cloak with her other hand to force Wiseman back by throwing another two knives at him before lunging forward. She wanted to turn to check on Lyn, but the cloaked man took all her attention. Metal clanked behind her, and then a strangled cry was cut off swiftly.

"Rei, down!" Lyn called, and the Kanhi wasted no time throwing herself to the floor as Lyn span from killing Lundgren to bury two feet of the Mani Katti in Wiseman's chest.

"Very good... sprite... recall..." The robed man croaked before seeming to fade out of existance, leaving only a few drops of viscous, blue blood on Lyn's sword as evidence that he had ever been there. Rei stood, stepping away as the thick liquid dropped from the sword before shimmering and evaporating into thin air.

"Lyn... what was that..?" Rei asked, staring at where he'd vanished.

"I don't know... a mystery for later. We have to find my Grandfather." Lyn told her, and she nodded.

"You're right." Rei replied, turning back to the garden Lundgren had been guarding. Inside, a pretty, dark-haired girl, maybe fourteen years old, knelt over an unconcious Lord Hausen. The girl was watching them carefully.

"Are you... Lyndis?" The girl asked. When Lyn nodded, she went on. "I'm Sara Eagler... your grandfather asked to be brought down here to die in this garden... please, Lord Lundgren took my staff, but it might not be too late to save him." Lyn was already at Hausen's side, kneeling there and stroking his face, so Rei went back to Lundgren's body. Fortunatly, she didn't need to touch him, since the two healing staves - one tipped with a fire opal, the other a sapphire - leaned against the wall with his javelins and a spare lance. Bringing the staffs back to Eagler, she handed them over. Slinging the blue one over her shoulder on the strap attached to the head and foot of the staff, she took the opal-headed staff and concentrated, drawing forth the restorative power and letting it flow from the gemstone towards the lord. With a strange spinning motion, she slung the restore staff and armed herself with the healing staff, calling out its' cerulean power to repair some of the damage the poison had already wreaked in Hausen's body.

Slowly, the old Lord came awake, opening his eyes and looking up at Lyn.

"Who's there... Madelyn..?" He asked, his voice weak.

"No... I'm sorry... my name is Lyndis. My mother was Madelyn." The girl's voice was soft, almost too soft for Rei to hear. Sensing that it was a private moment, she drew back, pulling Sara with her.

"Let them be together. You're a healer... can you tell me truthfully if he'll live?" Rei asked, quietly, looking at Sara.

"He... should. If he only believes he can. I think... no... it's my professional opinion that Lady Lyndis is the best medicine for him now. Um... if you don't mind me asking... who are you?" She looked curiously at Rei. "I'm... I feel certain that I've seen you somewhere before... in a painting maybe... or..."

"I don't think that's possibly... my name is Rei, and I'm Lady Lyn's tactician. I come from a long way away, so... perhaps you simply saw an image of someone from my homeland. I've been mistaken for someone else in the past."

"Oh... I see... will you be staying long? It's very important that Lady Lyndis stays here, at least for a while, to help her grandfather recover." There was a note of reluctance in her voice that didn't escape Rei's notice - something that she wanted to ask, but daren't.

"I... Lady Lyn won't need my services here... so I must travel onwards. I think she plans to stay a while, however." Rei paused. "What you want to ask... it's about your father, isn't it?" Sara nodded, and Rei sighed. "I'm sorry."

"I... I see..." Sara looked away. "Was he... smiling?"

"Yes. He was... he died for someone he loved, and at the hands of someone he cared for deeply. It was... how he wanted to go." Rei lied, crushing the guilt inside. Eagler had died with a look of purest concentration on what was left of his face.

"I'm glad... I'll miss him, but at... at least he was happy." The young troubadour looked at the ground to hide her silent tears. "I suppose... my brother will get the estate now... that mother and father are both gone."

"What will you do?" Rei asked, but before she could get an answer, a cry of pain made them both look up. Lyn had tried to lift Lord Hausen, but she'd forgotten about her shoulder somehow.

"Oh.. oh my, you're hurt... I'm sorry, I didn't notice... please..." Sara put a brave face on, hiding her tears for another day as she moved forward. "Please, let me look..." With that, she started fussing over the nomad princess, using her healing staff to set the shoulder and start it mending. "Please... you shouldn't use it for a month or so... I'm sorry, but... I'm not a Cleric, so... there's only so much I can do. We need to find someone else to carry him..."

"I'll go." Rei said, too quickly, making Lyn wonder why she felt the need to escape. "I'll find General Wallace, or Sir Kent... they'll be gentle." With that, she sketched a bow and left, quickly.

Two days later, things had finally calmed down enough to hold a celebration for the long battles and journey that had led to Lundgren's defeat and the probably end to the threat of Lycian civil war. There had been so much to do, and the individual members of the Legion had hardly seen each other, or so it felt.

Now, getting ready to enter the ballroom in the north wing of the castle-manor, Rei was feeling a mixture of fear and excitement that from the look of her, Lyn was also suffering from. In her simple, bamboo kimono, Rei felt like a shy mouse next to Lyn, resplendant in Caelin finery. A beautiful emerald dress hung on spaghetti straps from her shoulders, leaving her arms bare and her upper chest and back exposed to just above the point where it would become indecent. The dress flared out at her waist, becoming a cascade of velvet and finely-spun cotton that reached almost to the floor, stopping just low enough to hide her feet without dragging on the floor. The dress, and the make-up, hid her unladylike, muscled legs and body while accentating her Sacaean appearance, giving her the perfect blend of noble and savage. A short coat, fitted around her chest to cover most of what the dress left bare, with sleeves that widened towards the ends so that when her arms hung by her sides they hid the sword-calloused hands, highlighting with their voluminosity her slender-boned wrists and forearms while playing down the muscular bulk that covered those delicate structures. Finally, a teal choker the same hue as her normal clothes slimmed her neck, making it appear longer without detracting from the fine bones of her face.

Ironically, Lyn felt a similar way. She felt that the dress was designed to make her look clunky, like a barbarian child playing dress-up, compared to the elegant confinement of Rei's sheer, close-fitting robe. A part of her knew that she wouldn't be able to bear the limit it placed on the length of the tactician's stride, or the confining way it pulled when she tried to move too far or fast, but on the Kanhi girl, the kimono looked perfect. It made her ladylike and demure, despite the way her hair still hung loose around her face, too short to be styled properly. Unlike the monstrocity they had forced her own hair into, woven and piled atop her head and looking more like something a dog had left than a proper hairstyle.

"Ready?" She asked, and Rei shook her head.

"No, but I never will be." The islander smiled. "You seem nervous..."

"I... don't want to give the wrong impression. I'm not ladylike at all, and now I'm at a banquet as the guest of honour..." Lyn trailed off.

"It's fine." Rei's smile made her look back at the girl. "You don't have to be... just be you. Play it up if you have to. You're a barbarian princess, savage, and proud of it. If they can't handle that, then it's their problem. Shall we?" She indicated the doors, where Lord Hausen's steward, Reissman, stood waiting to announce them.

As they stepped into the hall at the top of the stairs, the room hushed for a moment as people turned to them, respectfully, before going back to their conversations. Kent waited at the bottom of the grand stair, wearing a more formal, ornate version of his normal red armour. His usual shadow was instead off near a table set with finger-foods, chatting and flirting with a pair of girls wearing servant livery who were clearly supposed to be working. Ninian and Florina stood nearby, the former wearing a formal dress and the latter her full dress armour. There was something oddly familiar about that armour to both Rei and Lyn, but neither woman could put their finger on it as they paused at the top of the staircase to take everything in.

Wil was talking with a group of men who looked like they were probably guards, and seemed to be getting on well with them. Again, there was something familiar about his clothing, but neither of them could figure out what it was. Near him stood Erk, thumbing through a book as usual while Nils chattered excitedly to him.

On the other side of the room, near where Wallace spoke with some older men - likely other retired knights - Lucius and Raven stood near the wall. Lucius had a look of amused patience on his face as Raven directed his most agressive scowl at the woman talking to him.

"I wonder if he realises he's taking the role of the less-attractive friend..." Lyn murmured to Rei as they started to descend the steps.

"It's Serra. She probably told him she wanted to talk to Lucius, but she's nervous and could he help her." The Kanhi girl chuckled back.

"Lady Lyndis, Lady Rei. Welcome down." Kent said, formally, as they reached the bottom of the steps. "You both look beautiful. Truly fitting of the occasion." He bowed with one arm in front of his waist.

"Thankyou, sir Kent." Lyn smiled back, even as Rei returned the bow in her own stiff-armed style. "Tell me, has there been word of my grandfather attending?"

"The physician has cleared him to attend, but lady Eagler has said that if he shows any sign of relapse, he must be returned to his chambers immediatly." Kent told them. "She seems to have taken quite a shine to his Lordship."

"It's a good thing, I think. A strong heart becomes stronger with good company." Lyn replied. "Ah, sir Kent... you should perhaps rescue Sain..." She indicated with her chin, and Kent turned to see that his flirting had drawn the attention of several more maids, and one annoyed-looking manservant. The crimson shield facepalmed and took his leave of the two nobles.

"Those two... between them, they're the perfect knight-retainer." Rei chuckled. "Individually, though, they're just too extreme on either end of the scale. Shall we go and rescue Raven?"

"Too late..." the nomad replied, as Erk and Nils almost physically dragged the cleric away from the hapless mercenary. "We can go talk to them anyway." She finished, and the two women made their way over. Despite her small steps, to Lyn's eyes Rei seemed to glide effortlessly across the floor, while her own stride was awkward and ungainly. Then she remembered Rei's words, and instead of trying to walk gracefully she simply walked slowly enough that she wouldn't leave the Kanhi behind. Forcing herself to relax made it much, much easier.

"My Ladies." Lucius saw them first and bowed, formally. "This celebration is a good idea. People need to remember the good times, as well as the bad. I went into town this morning, and they were still setting up the stages for the festival."

"Thankyou, brother Lucius." Lyn smiled. "Do yourself any Raven have any plans from here?"

"Yes, actually. Chancellor Reissman has offered us both a two year contract." Raven spoke up, apparently coming out of his Serra-induced sulk. "It seems that Caelin is lacking in swordsmen, or anything in the way of spiritual guidance." He sounded amused at that.

"So you're staying on? That's good news." Rei smiled, comforted further at the thought of having the dependable companions at Lyn's side if she needed them. She knew inside that the noble was safe here, much safer, indeed, than Rei herself would be when she left, but even so she knew she'd worry.

Before anyone could say another word, the door at the top of the stairs opened again, Reissman's voice announcing the newcomers.

"Lord Hausen Caelin and Lady Sara Eagler." The old steward's voice carried across the whole room, and, unlike at Lyn and Rei's entrance, the room stayed quieted while the ruler descended the steps. Sara had her arm linked in his, and it was consumate acting on both their parts that hid the fact that she was supporting most of his weight.

When they reached the bottom step, Hausen finally spoke.

"My friends, thankyou for coming tonight, and welcome to Castle Caelin." He paused to let his words sink in, for the poison had not sapped his ability to let his words carry. "The festival in the village is dedicated to the return of happier times and the homecoming of those men unfairly conscripted into the army by my late brother. This celebration, however, is a far more personal affair. It is a homecoming for my granddaughter, and a chance to reward those who were brave enough to stand with her. It is also a chance to welcome two new knights into the service of the house, and for me personally..." He paused again, letting a significant look fall on General Wallace. "A chance to chastise an old friend who should know better than to go galivanting across the countryside at his age." The hall chuckled at that, as Wallace had the grace to look embarassed.

"So please, would Lyndis' Legion gather before me now. I am certain that they are as eager to get to the banquet as the Chancellor is to get them there." A quick grin, and again the hall found itself chuckling at the joke.

The legion formed up in front of him in the same order they'd joined Lyn. At long last, Rath showed himself from where he'd been hiding from the general attention behind the staircase, Dorcas following with an amused look despite the uncomfortable way he wore his formal garb. A page stepped out from behind the couple on the stairs, holding a large box in both hands. Sara opened the case, and took a medal from it.

"Lyndis, my granddaughter. You have no idea how truly happy it makes me to see you alive and well. I can only hope that you decide to remain here after tonight." As the nomad girl stepped forward, he lifted the medal from Sara's hands by the ribbon and hung it around Lyn's neck. The medal itself showed a simple, seven-pointed star. Lyn moved to one side even as Sara took another medal up.

"Lady Rei of the Kanhi Isles. You have stood beside my granddaughter from the very beginning. I could ask for no companion more loyal. Know that wherever your life may take you, there will always be a home for you in Caelin." It was the islander's turn to step forward and bow her head to accept the star medal, and she murmured a thankyou before moving to stand next to Lyn, tanned fingers touching the medal at her throat.

"Sirs Kent le Defense and Sain L'Attac. Your loyalty, even in the face of an easy way out without loss of honour is especially commendable. In addition to granting Kent the Duran Star, I name him Lord Commander of the Knights of Caelin. Sain, your loyalty is exceeded only by your passion. To you, I grant the position of Champion of Justice." This pronouncement caused a stir. There hadn't been a Champion of Justice in Caelin for several generations, the honoured position having been considered out-dated. Matters of honour or law were rarely dealt with through trials by combat any more.

As the two knights took their positions with Lyn and Rei, Hausen continued to speak.

"Dame Florina of Ilia and master Wil of Pherae, it makes me happy to see young blood joining the ranks of the Knights of Caelin." As he continued, Lyn gasped slightly. That was why their clothing seemed familiar... it bore similarities to Kent and Sain's armour.

"That girl is going to get it after this..." Lyn muttered to Rei. "Why didn't she tell me she was joining the knights?"

"She probably wanted it to be a surprise" Rei whispered back as the two new knights moved over to them and Dorcas was called forth. He was presented with not only the medal, but a box of medicines to take home to Natalie. It would be uncouth to simply give money at an awards ceremony, though he would be paid properly before he left. Then moving on through Erk and Serra, Matthew and Rath, Raven, Lucius, Nils and Ninian - though the siblings did not recieve the Duran Star, but rather a non-military award.

Then it was time for the banquet. Somehow, between leaving the ballroom and arriving in the main hall, the group lost several people including Rath and the siblings.

The next morning found Rei packing her bags in the diplomat's suite she's been given. It was smaller than the quarters she'd been given during their short stay at Araphen, and somehow homier for it. Neither did it have the foldable wall of those chambers.

"Rei..?" Lyn's voice made her look up as the noble came to stand in the open doorway. "Oh... you're leaving... aren't you..?"

"I have to... I'm sorry... I want to stay, but..." She sighed, and fastened the saddlebag shut.

"No... I won't ask you to stay. I know that you have to go. I even think I understand why..." Lyn paused, difficultly. "I just... wanted to give you this." She crossed the room in a few quick strides and took Rei's hand, pressing something into it. The spirit's ring.

"and..." she looked up, her eyes suspiciously moist. "If you would have it... I would call you she'enedra... clan-sister to Lorca. When your quest is over... there will be a home for you, if you want it."

"Lyn..." Rei simply said her name, no other words coming. She hadn't expected this... if Lyn knew what she was, then she wouldn't be offering it... or perhaps she would... "She'enedra... I would... it would make me glad to be Rei of the Lorca... but, my father..."

"I understand. I know how you feel about him... about your homeland. Even so..." Lyn asked, somehow holding her gaze. "Can you not call me clansister?"

"For you... yes. As... the person dearest to me... but... I can't stay..."

"It doesn't have to be now." Lyn told her. "When you're ready. Just know that the islands don't hold your only family."

Rei became aware slowly of how close they were to reach other as she reached up to put her hand on Lyn's shoulder. Something inside her was conflicted... should she tell her? Should she not? But her body was acting of its' own accord as she started to rise onto tip-toes.

"Lady Rei! We're ready to... oh! Well now!" Wallace's voice booming from the doorway shattered the moment, and Rei's hand fell to her side again. "Shall I postpone our departure?"

"Ah!" Rei gulped. "No. I'm ready..." She looked back up at Lyn, who seemed confused. "Thankyou, she'enedra. I'll see you again... I promise." With that, she grabbed her bags and almost fled from the room.

By the time Lyn moved, both Rei and Wallace were long gone from the room. Slowly, the Sacaean brought a hand up to her lips where she'd felt Rei's breath. '_Was she about to..?_' she asked herself, silently, and didn't know how she felt about the answer.

'_I can't believe I almost..._' Rei chastised herself as she hung the saddlebags on Petal's rump. '_She invites me into her clan and I almost screw it up there and then! Thank the spirits for Wallace..._' As though thinking his name attracted his attention, the old knight looked over at her.

"Are you sure you don't want to stay?" He asked, and she nodded with a sigh.

"I can't. I have a duty to find out what happened to Kojiro, if only for his family's sake." She shrugged to herself. "Sara, you ready?"

"One sec..." The troubadour muttered, and finally managed to get the strap tightened to hold her own saddlebags to her Caelin stock mare's back. The animal was of the same bloodline as Kent and Sain's warhorses, but somewhat lighter built than those two. "There. Done and done." She wore her two staves across her back, somehow managing to mount up without striking either of them on the stable roof or her mount. Rei swung herself up into her own saddle a moment later, though Wallace would have to lead his horse out before mounting.

"Wallace?" She asked, and he chuckled before leading the way out of the stables and into the morning sun.

A/N: Yes, I know that the possibility of a castle having both a ballroom AND a grand hall... since ballrooms are mostly an invention of the victorian era... is insanely low, but hey. I wanted a ballroom scene, and if you can have a Cleric swearing "Oh my gosh!" and lords saying "OK!", in the canon, I can damn well have a ballroom at Castle Caelin if I want. :p


	11. Interlude 1: Wiseman

**Disclaimer:** Nothing recognisable belongs to the author. It all belongs to Nintendo and Intelligent Systems. Some details may have been changed, but… on the whole, it's theirs. This is to be reproduced only with the author's permission, and may not be used for profit. If it is reproduced, this warning must be at the beginning of each document.

Author's Note: The following few chapters are not, strictly speaking, necessary to the plot. The core story of Rekka no Ken will resume again in Chapter 11: A New Beginning. These Interludes mostly involve what happens in the intervening year.

* * *

**Interlude 1: Wiseman**

"Sprite... recall..." Wiseman half-whispered to himself, activating the set spell hidden in the charm he wore around his neck. As the castle around him faded into darkness, he smiled to himself. He thought he'd done a rather good job of playing human, if he did say so himself. Between appearing in Lundgren's chambers fourteen months ago and corrupting him to the point of rebellion, it had been an eventful life. Yes, he'd been forced to let some things pass him, but who would have been able to guess where allowing the fool to send weapons to the bandits in the north would lead? It had seemed a harmless enough ploy at first. More death, more quintessence to be released for the master.

If only he'd known that it would lead to this. His own near-death at the hands of that devil swordwoman and the forseen one, and the failure of his pawn.

But it mattered not. He would try again. The secondary paw would suffice, he supposed, though Darin had fewer motivations. It could be as much as ten months before he was even convinced of the need to go to war... perhaps Helman would be a better choice, but no, while he would be easy to break he had no substance to carry him through.

"Wiseman." The cold voice brought him back to reality as he looked around the sanctuary. "The master has already heard of your failure."

"Ephidel. You told him, I assume? It is not failure, merely a setback." Wiseman replied smoothly, throwing his hood back as he turned to face the other morph and ignoring the now dry hole in his chest. Ephidel was more attractive than him, though perhaps that was to be expected. The younger Morph was, after all, a newer model, more perfected.

"Whatever your words, it has been deemed that you have outlived your usefulness. The quintessence required to repair your failing body has been deemed too high a price. You are relieved of your duties." Ephidel told him in that same cold, emotionless voice. The younger morph had not been given the capacity to pretend to be human, Wiseman realised.

"Who is to replace me?" He asked. He would prove that he was better.

"I am." Ephidel told him. As it looked at the older morph, Ephidel felt contempt. Wiseman had become too human, believing that he would have a chance to survive. Even as it stepped forward and placed its hands on Wiseman's cheeks and started to drain the older morph's remaining energy, even as he gave a humanlike scream of agony as the energy was drawn forth to reduce him to a drying husk, then a pile of ingredients... even as it did these things, Ephidel swore to itself... it would not make Wiseman's mistake.

As the final dust fell from the emptied morph's robes, Ephidel smiled to himself. No. He would not make Wiseman's mistakes. Pulling his hood over his head, the corruptor prepared to teleport to Lahus.


	12. Interlude 2: Lady Wallace

**Disclaimer: **Nothing recognisable belongs to the author. It all belongs to Nintendo and Intelligent Systems. Some details may have been changed, but… on the whole, it's theirs. This is to be reproduced only with the author's permission, and may not be used for profit. If it is reproduced, this warning must be at the beginning of each document.

Notes: I'm still working on the next Interlude, so it may be a little while... on that note, I'd like reader opinions. If you think I should make these Interludes a seperate file and write them in tandem with the main story, instead of waiting until all the interludes are finished to move on with chapter 11, please drop a line and say so... if you think I should carry on like this, then say that too, please!

Also, I haven't had a chance to spellcheck this, so if you notice any mistakes, just let me know and I'll fix them manually... I think I caught the main ones with my preread, but you can never be too careful.

* * *

**Interlude 2: Lady Wallace**

"Demo, Wallace-dono, anata wa Lycia-jin desu. Kanhi wa..." Rei spoke rapidly, and Sara could only stare, bewildered, as she and Wallace carried on a conversation in the strange, harsh-sounding language. They were three days out of Caelin now, but the constant conversation in a language she neither understood nor particularly liked the sound of was starting to get on her nerves.

"Look, you two..." She finally interjected. "I understand you don't get much chance to talk your home language this far south, lady Rei, but please will you at least make some effort to talk so I can understand?"

"Oh!" Rei blinked, exclaiming. "I'm so sorry... I didn't even think of that. Please, forgive me." She swivelled in her saddle and somehow managed to bow deeply without falling from her seat.

"It's alright, I just... I was starting to feel a bit lonely, being left out of the conversation. General Wallace, if I could ask, how is it that you speak that language?" Sara asked, feeling uncomfortable at the deep bow.

"Ah, perhaps the story is in order..." The old general mused. "I'm surprised you didn't ask before... or you, actually, Rei-sama."

"I must admit to being curious, ever since that Caelin captain mistook me for your wife. I did not want to ask, however, in case you took offence..." Rei shrugged slightly as she spoke in apology.

"You were married?" Sara blinked at the general. She hadn't heard about that before.

"Yes. My wife died six years ago in the ague plague. She spent most of her time among the peasants working on the farms, trying to make sure that they weren't affected too badly... sadly, her magic wasn't strong enough by the end for her to heal herself." Wallace' voice was warm, he'd clearly come to terms with the death and remembered her with love rather than loss. "The ague is unknown in her homeland, and she had no protection against it."

"She was an islander, wasn't she? That's why Captain Vengre thought I was her ghost." Rei asked, and the old general nodded.

"Yes. I met her while I was travelling as a young knight. You may have heard stories about my, ah, sense of direction? I'm afraid that it really is as bad as they say. I was trying to find Nabata when I stumbled onto a boat to the Kanhi isles. The boat landed on the southmost island, Akikan, in an area I later learned was called Kurobi. The people there were small and dark, and few of them spoke the common language. When you're in an environment like that, you tend to pick up the local tongue fairly quickly, or at least it felt that way to me. I spent probably two years wandering around the islands until I returned to Akiku and came to Nadeshiko prefecture. In the time I'd been wandering, a civil war had occured and the larger Nadeshiko clan had subsumed Kurobi and the adjacent Akaki." He paused, musing as though trying to work out what to say next.

"My tutors mentioned once that our lands used to be separate from Nadeshiko, but I didn't realise that it was so recent, in my father's life-time, even." Rei murmured, half to herself

"Indeed. When I arrived, unlike in other lands, I was taken to the castle almost immediately. Lord Akira Kurome had heard of some of my exploits and wanted my help training his soldiers in southern lance styles. I believe he may have been planning an uprising to take back the Kurobi lands, but the rising never occurred. I did accept a one-year contract to train his militia, his _ashigaru_, in the use of infantry lances in return for diplomatic aid and an opening for a Lycian ambassador. It was while living at the castle that I met my wife, lady Makoto."

"My aunt..!" Rei realised, and the other two looked at her. "My mother told me once about her sister who disappeared with a foreigner two years before I was born. It caused a lot of fuss at the time."

"Yes, I remember." Wallace chuckled. "She was serving in a shrine at the time, it was most... oh, I'm trying to remember how your father put it. 'Improper and irregular' I think."

"I should say so. Miko are supposed to be celibate. Allegedly, they lose their powers if they become impure." Rei chuckled herself. It seemed that there was a history of trouble in the women of her family she hadn't known about until now.

"Her magic may have been weakened, but if so I never noticed. She was a wonderful woman, and I like to think I did her a service by taking her away from there." The old general grinned. "She was five years younger than me, but it never stopped either of us."

"Wait, you said you'd arranged for an ambassador to travel to Nadeshiko, but I never remember a Lycian at court." Rei asked, frowning slightly.

"When your father found out about myself and Makoto, he cast me out... I don't think he intended his sister-in-law to go with me, but she did."

"I'm glad to hear she was happy, at any rate, but I don't look forward to telling father about her death when I return." Rei sighed, then looked up again as Wallace cleared his throat.

"Actually... there's something you should know, then, about your father. He's not the son of the previous lord of Kurobi, but rather one of his generals..."

"No, please, don't say any more." Rei told him.

"I have to. Your father betrayed his lord to Nadeshiko in return for governance of the Kurobi region of the Nadeshiko prefecture... but I think he did the right thing. Because of him, many men kept their lives who would otherwise have lost them, and fewer properties were destroyed. The previous lord, Makara Kurobi, was driving his land into the ground." Wallace' voice and piercing blue gaze kept her paying attention until the final words, stopping her from going into her own world at news of her fathers' betrayal.

"Even if it was the right thing..." Rei murmured, finishing the sentence mentally; '_betrayal isn't something I wanted to hear about..._' To the Kanhi, honour, or perceived honour, was everything. Betrayal such as her fathers' made a mockery of the whole system. Even if he'd known he was in the wrong he should have held faith with his master Kurobi until the end, then taken his own life in atonement.

"Lady Rei..? Are you alright..?" Sara asked, nudging her mare closer.

"I'm... no, I'm not, lady Eagler..." Rei said, her voice soft, then continued. "I've just been told that my father is an oathbreaker and dishonoured... even if he was in the right... that doesn't excuse it." She paused again before continuing. "I've learned more about him since leaving the islands than I ever knew at home, and I don't know if I like what I'm learning."

"You love him, don't you? Your father, I mean." Sara asked, feeling like she was possibly trespassing onto dangerous territory but unable to stop pressing.

"Of course. He's my father. But I don't know any more if I like him very much... and..."

"And?" Sara pushed when Rei trailed off.

"What if I'm like him..? What if betrayal and dishonour are in my blood? What if..?" Rei trailed off again, and this time it was Wallace who spoke.

"Lady Rei, you are loyal to a fault. Take it from this old bear, I've seen disloyal people and enough of them, but you?" He shook his head, laughing. "You're worse than a Sacaean."

"How can you know that..?" Rei asked, looking at him with doubt still lingering in her dark eyes.

"You're here with us travelling away from Caelin to look for a man you hate despite the fact that you've found someone you could fall in love with so easily." He told her, bluntly.

"You... you saw that..?" Rei gasped, mortified. "But... no, I could never... I mean... you're still... and... you know about my condition..."

"Condition?" Sara asked, confused.

"As if I would abandon you just for that! Lady Lyn would have a fair go of killing me if I let something happen to you! Especially remembering who you're talking to, that's a stupid comment to make. Now if I were Pheraean, then maybe, but..." Wallace laughed again, and it proved to be infections as Rei realised how silly it was to think that Wallace, who had

been Sara's fathers' shieldmate for years, would shun her because of such a thing.

"The pheraeans don't like it..? Who else among the Lycian league frown on such things?" Rei asked, still laughing softly.

"What are you talking about..?" Sara still looked confused.

"We'll tell you when you're older." Wallace grinned, then looked seriously at Rei. "Has _she_ ever heard you laugh?"

"I... don't think so. It's not something I do often, I think." Rei shook her head. "Why...?"

"I think you should let her hear it before you leave to return home... and that's not all. I think you should tell her." Wallace replied, still serious.

"No... that would be too cruel. To tell her such a thing, when it can never happen..." '_and I couldn't bear it if she hated me afterwards..._' she finished the sentence in her head.

"You two are just being weird..." Sara decided before they turned onto the road to Ositia.


	13. Interlude 3: Sibling and Shadow

**Disclaimer:** Nothing recognisable belongs to the author. It all belongs to Nintendo and Intelligent Systems. Some details may have been changed, but… on the whole, it's theirs. This is to be reproduced only with the author's permission, and may not be used for profit. If it is reproduced, this warning must be at the beginning of each document.

* * *

**Interlude 3: Sibling and Shadow**

"Nils, this way." Ninian hissed quietly, waving her little brother over into the culvert. Hopefully the undergrowth that had almost hidden the ditch would also hide the performers. She didn't know how, but the Fang had found them again. Travelling with Lyndis' Legion had offered them some measure of protection, but they'd left that almost two months ago and now it seemed their overconfidence was threatening to be their undoing.

"Come out, come out wherever you are..." The woman's voice taunted in sing-song tones as she followed them on foot, having left her horse at the edge of the forest. "You know we'll find you, little children. You know, I have something that belongs to you..."

The two performers held still, hardly daring to breathe as the blue-haired witch walked past their hiding place.

"Such a pretty little stone... I wonder why it's so important to you. Lady Sonia said it was powerful, but it just seems like a worthless hunk of rock to me..." The voice was fading as Ursula went past and deeper into the forest, and the siblings moved again, crawling along the ditch in a hurry with no regard to what it was doing to their light-coloured clothes. The ditch came to an end, and they were running again, fleeing as only their kind could.

"Just a little further and we'll be out of the forest..." Ninian called to Nils, looking over her shoulder... but the bard was gone. "Nils? Nilanisae, where are you?" She stopped, turning and looking around frantically. She couldn't let them have her brother...

"No, let me go!" His voice came from the left, sounding like he was struggling. Throwing caution to the wind, she ran in that direction, only one thought in her mind...

"Ninian? Ninian, where did you go?" Nils asked, slowing and looking around. His sister had disappeared in the trees, even though she'd been just there... no, wait, didn't they already pass that tree? Nils looked around, turning rapidly on the spot as he tried to get his bearings, his long scarf flying in circles around him.

"Nils! I'm here! Urk.. help!" His sister's voice, from... behind him! He didn't know what he could do, but he had to try... if they took Ninian, their escape would all be for nothing. Turning, he sprinted towards the source of the voice...

He was there, Ninian saw, struggling in the blue-haired witch's grip. Ninian called what little power she could in this form and focused it as she charged into the clearing, centring it on her shoulder as she barged the fang Valkyrie... who vanished, laughing as she tumbled to the floor from her own momentum, the power she'd summoned discharging harmlessly into the ground even as Nils leaped on top of her and pinned her down, a sadistic glee on his face... which changed, shifted, grew older and not his. Even as Ninian forced herself to roll over and get leverage to try and push the weight off her, it grew heavier until Nils' image was replaced by a dark-haired, golden-eyed woman who looked to be in her early thirties. The only thing that didn't change was the unholy expression on her face as she leaned close, capturing the dancer's wrists in her hands and holding her down.

"Oh, so foolish... if only Nergal would let me play with you a little, but no, he wants his prize in tact... foolish man, you're such a precious, innocent beauty and he'll waste you with his mind-control..." The female morph leered before whispering words in some gravelly language, the spell calling earth to bind her wrists together and immobilise her.

"Let her go!" Nils yelled at the hooded man who held his unconscious sister by the wrist.

"Like this? Certainly. She's no use to me now you're here." The man - now that he'd spoken, he recognised the voice as Heintz, the shaman who had chased them before - threw the body to the ground. Before it had a chance to hit the ground, Nils was there, cushioning the fall and checking her pulse. It was going strong, fortunately, with no irregularity.

"Well done..." His sister said, her eyes snapping open even as her arms went around his neck, holding him in a headlock as she rolled to her feet and shed the illusion. Ursula sniggered to herself as she clamped down on the artery in his neck for a second, first cutting off the oxygen to his brain then overloading it with a huge burst as she released the blood vessel, knocking him out. "Heintz, bind him and lets get out of here. This forest gives me the creeps."

"As you wish, dame Ursula." Heintz bowed, almost mockingly, and summoned shackles of darkness to bind the unconscious boy.


	14. Interlude 4: Wrath of the Plains

**Disclaimer:** Nothing recognisable belongs to the author. It all belongs to Nintendo and Intelligent Systems. Some details may have been changed, but… on the whole, it's theirs. This is to be reproduced only with the author's permission, and may not be used for profit. If it is reproduced, this warning must be at the beginning of each document.

* * *

**Interlude 4: Wrath of the Plains**

Rath of Kutolah sighed softly to himself as he looked over the low-lying farmland ahead of him. He had spent the four months between slipping quietly out of castle Caelin and now in mountains, training his beloved Stormchaser to cope with the rougher terrain. He'd realised since leaving Araphen that not all battles could be fought on the open plains or level streets, and it had been almost embarrassing at times, trying to keep pace with the infantry units in the rough ground that was so common in Lycia. Now, he thought, he was ready to return to his wanderings as a mercenary until he could find the purpose for which he had been singled out to leave his tribe.

As he walked his horse down the mountain path, his apparent self-absorption was only half act. Still, he was awake enough that the bandit throwing axe missed rather than taking his head off. Stringing his bow quickly, he looked around for a target and found it easily, nocking an arrow, aiming and loosing it in one swift action. The bandit went down, but the rest of his group started moving out of the rocks and barring his path.

"Not so smart to be wandering around out here alone, traveller." The bandits apparent leader said. He was a shorter man, carrying a large sword and, unusually for bandits, a shield. The inevitable axe, almost a signature for bandits everywhere, hung from his belt.

Where another warrior as confident as Rath might have made a witty rejoinder or wisecrack, the nomad simply looked at the bandit leader and said a single word.

"Move." He commanded, walking his horse forwards towards the line of bandits blocking his path.

"What? You've got this wrong, boy. You stop right there and hand over your goods, or you'll give them to us dead." The bandit told him, sheathing his sword in the back of his shield and taking the handaxe from his belt. He drew it back to throw when one of Rath's arrows buried itself in his eye. A half-second later, a second arrow killed the man next to him, and a half-second after that the third bandit blocking the path died.

The rest of the group chose that moment to charge and avenge their brethren, and after that it simply became a contest of moving, shooting and moving again until the bandits were worn down. Rath finally stopped when there was a single bandit remaining, and sat there looking down at the runtish axe-user.

"Go. Tell others here that travellers are not to be disturbed." Rath spoke, and the bandit fled. Dismounting, Rath started the arduous task of recovering as many arrows as he could.

"That was pretty impressive." A man's voice spoke from behind him as he finished. "Twenty bandits on your own? Tell me, are you a mercenary?" The voice was cultured, noble-sounding even.

"Yes. You have work?" Rath asked, standing and looking at the man. He wore his blonde hair cropped short and light riding armour covered his compact form.

"Not in so many words. I'm not an employer so much as employed. Yeager, captain of the Moonmoth mercenary company." The man grinned, charmingly. "Want to join us?"


	15. Interlude 5: Quiet Fury

**Disclaimer:** Nothing recognisable belongs to the author. It all belongs to Nintendo and Intelligent Systems. Some details may have been changed, but… on the whole, it's theirs. This is to be reproduced only with the author's permission, and may not be used for profit. If it is reproduced, this warning must be at the beginning of each document.

* * *

**Interlude 5: Quiet Fury**

Dorcas stared into his mug. He'd been away from Natalie for a month now, after three spent by her side and a month returning from Caelin. Briefly, he spared a thought for the girls he'd left there. They were just children, really, and they'd taken so much onto their shoulders. It made him proud to think that he'd managed to keep them safe enough. It had been the least he could do after they'd helped Natalie so much.

But the money had still run out. Medicine was expensive, and people who knew how to administer it even more so. So here he was again, on the road, looking for work more lucrative than farming.

"Please, sir, I'm just a waitress... if you want that, you'll have to go somewhere else..." The girl's voice broke him out of his reverie. Putting the mug down, he saw that one of the innkeeper's daughters - there were two of them, both blonde, though the older was considerably more developed - was being harassed by a customer.

"Hey, come on, girly. Your sister's open enough to offers." The man jeered, and Dorcas sighed. He stood up and moved over to tap the man on the shoulder when the girl was moved out of the way by a man even larger than he was. The newcomer wore a blue shirt and what looked like a studded metal band around his head. His short brown hair sat atop a face that had seen better days, and his nose had been broken at least once.

"She said no." He growled. "You wanna make it a fight? No-one fights Barte and wins."

"You'd do well to listen too him." Dorcas murmured from behind the man, and he nodded, looking scared as the two massive axe-carrying men looked down at him.

"I'm sorry, I didn't..." he muttered, and stood up before making his escape.

"Hey. I like your style." The man who called himself Bartre looked at Dorcas with a cocky grin. "Wanna fight?"


	16. Interlude 6: Seperate Ways

**Disclaimer:** Nothing recognisable belongs to the author. It all belongs to Nintendo and Intelligent Systems. Some details may have been changed, but… on the whole, it's theirs. This is to be reproduced only with the author's permission, and may not be used for profit. If it is reproduced, this warning must be at the beginning of each document.

* * *

**Interlude 6: Separate Ways**

"Are you alright?" Rei asked, helping Sara to stand.

"Yes, I'll be alright..." The troubadour nodded, looking around slightly groggily. "What happened..?"

"Assassins. One of them hit you with a sleep spell, I think. Wallace is chasing them down. We're okay now."

"That's good... I'm sorry. I'm so useless..." Sara grimaced. "I've been on the road with you for nearly a year now, and... I can't help but feel I'm holding you back."

"You're not. You've saved me a couple of times, haven't you? I wouldn't have survived that wound in Badon without your magic." Rei reminded her.

"I guess... but... I don't... Please, don't be disappointed in me, but... I can't keep up with this life. I guess I just don't have what it takes..." Sara didn't look at her, just staring at the floor.

"If you want to go back to Caelin, that's fine. You're a good friend, Lady Sara, but I've noticed it too. You're wilting out here. I'm happy and flattered that you thought it was important enough for you to keep forcing yourself to come all this way, but I won't hold it against you if you leave... we're not far from Caelin now, you could probably make it back in under a week."

"Thank you, Rei... I'm sorry. I'll stay until Wallace gets back, though..." Sara smiled, and Rei nodded.

"It's nearly dark. If he's not back by morning, you should leave anyway. Without him around, you'll just be in danger if you stay with me anyway."

"Until the morning then..." Sara nodded. "How about we make camp up there?" She asked, pointing to the edge of a nearby wood.

"No, that's no good. Further down that way, there's a stream." Rei smiled, indicating and almost managing to keep the teasing from her voice.


	17. Another Journey

**Disclaimer:** Nothing recognisable belongs to the author. It all belongs to Nintendo and Intelligent Systems. Some details may have been changed, but… on the whole, it's theirs. This is to be reproduced only with the author's permission, and may not be used for profit. If it is reproduced, this warning must be at the beginning of each document.

* * *

**Chapter 11 - Another Journey**

So this was finally it. The end of her quest. Somehow, she'd imagined that it would be more dramatic thank this.

"Get your hands off me." Rei growled, stamping down and back with her foot to crush the bandit's instep. As the man yelled and let go, she span, drawing a throwing dagger from its sheath at her wrist and using it to open his neck. It was a stupid idea, she knew - the bandit was far from alone, and even if she'd been wearing her cloak she'd have had trouble surviving their revenge. There were two more of them in the inn's common room alone, and none of the other people there looked fit to fight. The two bandits, who were looking at her with something suddenly akin to wariness.

"Hey, you can't do that." One of them told her, stupidly, taking his axe from where it hung on his belt.

"I just did." She glared back, taking her fighting dagger back from the bandit she'd killed and holding it in her left hand. "Run away, or it's your turn next."

"... no." The other bandit - apparently the smarter of the two - responded. "Sit back down, give us your daggers, and we'll forget about it."

"I'd like to be able to do as you say, but..." Rei sighed, looking down. "I can't just let you rob these people..."

"What makes you think you can stop us?" The smart bandit smirked. "You got lucky, girlie, but that's all."

"I see." Rei murmured, walking forwards slowly towards the bandit, fiddling with her daggers as though nervous with her head still down. "Then... maybe if I give you something special... you'll let us go..?" She asked, reaching up to her neck with her left hand and taking the silver chain she wore there out, unclasping it to take the small object that hung from it off.

"Oh? What's that?" The stupid bandit asked, moving forwards, curiously.

"A present... from someone I care deeply about." She smiled wistfully, then slipped Lyn's ring on. Moving quickly, she brought u her right hand, still holding her fighting dagger, and lunged at him. He brought up his axe to block, but when she knocked it aside with her left hand he was left too shocked to think of a way to avoid the knife that buried itself in his throat. Putting her boot against his chest, she shoved the dying, gasping body away from her to free her dagger before plucking her throwing dagger again from its sheath to cut the smarter swordsman's weapon wrist open. Arterial blood, thick and red, sprayed out and covered her, forcing her to close her eyes, but even so she managed to avoid his off-handed vengeance strike. Wiping the back of her hand across her eyes to clear them, she span and ducked under his guard to shove both knives up under his ribs.

"You'll be alright now, I'm going to find help." She turned to look at the other people - mostly oldtimers and women - in the common room. Someone screamed, and another person fainted.

"She's some kind of demon..." She heard one of the oldtimers muttering, and they all looked away from her. Sighing, she turned back to the doorway and, cleaning and sheathing her daggers, pulled her cloak on before walking out into the streets. She slipped the ring off and put it back on the chain around her neck - the strength it gave her was dangerous if the ring was worn for too long, since her body wasn't built to maintain it.

"Whoa!" A man's voice exclaimed, and she looked left just in time to see a sorrel horse rearing back. She backed up in time to avoid being trampled, but the look the green-haired rider gave her nearly pinned her to the wall.

"Are you one of the bandits?" He asked, and his voice was younger than he looked. He was wearing House Pherae livery, she realised, recognising the insignia from an encounter the year before.

"No, she's been staying at the inn a couple of days now... I think." The second voice was female, and finally Rei noticed the second rider on the horse's back. A fourteen year old girl, her hair a darker green than the riders'. She was carrying a bow, using her other hand to hold on around the cavalier's waist.

"Yes. My name is Rei. I'm a wandering strategist... you're one of Lord Elbert's men, aren't you?" She addressed the chevalier

"Yes. I'm Lowen. This is Rebecca, the mayor's daughter. There's more bandits coming, we need to get to the ridge outside town. Lord Eliwood is there with Sir Marcus, then we'll be able to drive the marauders off." The cavalier told her quickly.

"Alright. I'm coming with you. How did you plan to leave? The main gate will be guarded." Rei asked, looking around warily in case more bandits approached. This was a large band.

"There's a sally port on the eastern side of the village." Rebecca told her. "We need to go, before it's too late."

"Right." Rei nodded. "Can you come with me two moments, please?" She asked them, then ran round to the back of the inn to where the small stable stood. The cavalier followed, then saw what she was getting at. With a cry, he charged the two stunned-looking bandits who were guarding the three horses currently in the stable and cut them down with broad sweeps of his sword. Rei followed quickly, letting the smallest of the three out and throwing a saddle onto its' back. She could get her bags later, she reckoned, and bridled the animal before swinging up onto its back.

"Petal, ike." She whispered to her mount, and the mountain-bred horse trotted sideways for a moment before she nodded to Lowen. The two horses took off together, heading towards the sally port.

* * *

"So Rei, tell me, what are you doing in Pherae?" Eliwood asked. They were sitting in the inn's common room again, and while Rei had cleaned the blood from her skin and clothes the locals still treated her with a kind of wariness.

"Travelling," she shrugged. "What about you, Lord Eliwood? Going somewhere in particular? I noticed you're equipped for a long trip. Are you going to meet your friend again?"

"I only wish I was." The redheaded noble sighed. "My father has disappeared. He's been missing for two months now, and mother is starting to worry."

"So you're going to look for him?" She asked, raising her eyebrows. "With - if you'll excuse me - an old man and a squire as your only warriors? Lord Eliwood, your counties' cavalry are famous throughout Elibe, but Sir Marcus should have gone into a monastery by now, and Sir Lowen is barely old enough to polish his sword. I can't see a reason for you to have just them unless..." She paused, thoughtfully. "Your father had most of the knights with him when he disappeared, didn't he?"

"Yes. He went to meet Lord Helman with them, but disappeared on his way back to the castle. If I took anyone else, Castle Pherae would be too weakly defended in case whatever attacked my father decides to finish the job." He paused, before grinning. "Besides, don't write Marcus off yet. He's got enough fight in him still to land me on my back nine times out of ten."

"With respect, Lord Eliwood, you're even younger than Sir Lowen." She paused, then chuckled self-depreciatingly. "Then again, who am I to talk? I'm only eighteen myself. You're what, sixteen? The same age as Lady Lyn was when we fought Lundgren."

"You see my point." He smirked. "Actually, I'd feel a lot better about this if you came along. I know it's not exactly an army, but your tactical advice has gotten smaller groups out of worse trouble before."

"I'll need paying. I can't afford to work for free at the moment." She told him, and he nodded.

"Of course. The full rates for a tactician in the employ of House Pherae." He paused. "How does a six month contract sound? I can't promise that this'll take any less than that."

"If we're travelling, it should be fine." She told him. "But if we have to stay in one place for any length of time, I can't stay. I'm sorry, but I can't tell you why."

"Very well. I can't imagine staying in one place for more than a couple of days at a time. We have a lot of ground to cover, and not many leads."

"Sounds good to me. Do we leave in the morning?"

"At first light. I want to be in Santaruz by Thursday." Eliwood nodded. "On that note, I'm going to turn in." He stood up, ready to leave.

"One moment. I'll talk to Marcus about drawing up my contract, but... wouldn't it be better to hire some mercenaries to help us out?"

"Perhaps. Did you have anyone in mind?" He turned back, frowning thoughtfully.

"I think I might. I'm here specifically because I heard that a man I know named Dorcas is in the area. He's a strong fighter, and loyal. I'll talk to Sir Marcus about it."

"Yes, you do that. After last year, I think I trust your judgement." Eliwood smiled and went to bed.

Getting up, Rei walked over to the table the two chevalier were sharing.

"You must have steel in your heart as well as in your belly, or you don't deserve to wear it!" Marcus was admonishing the squire, who was nodding, clearly shaken.

"Ano... excuse me, sir Marcus. If I could interrupt for a moment..?" Rei asked, tentatively. It sounded like they were involved in a fairly important discussion.

"Of course, lady Rei. You were a great help today." Marcus nodded to her, standing to pull a chair out.

"Thankyou, sir Marcus." She smiled at him as he retook his own seat. "Lord Eliwood has hired me to travel with you as strategist. He's also asked me to investigate finding other people to help, having explained the situation with his father."

"He must trust you a great deal." Marcus murmured, nodding. "You mean to hire mercenaries? Naturally, any choices you make will have to be ratified by me." He leaned on the table, steepling his fingers.

"Of course. There is a man staying at one of the other inns nearby. I plan to seek him out in the morning. His name is Dorcas, an axe man from the Bern-Sacae border. A quiet man, but he fights for the right reasons, and he's one of the men who helped Lady Lyn with the troubles in Caelin last year."

"You know him well, then?" Marcus asked, lifting an eyebrow. "I will need to meet him."

"I was hoping you would come with me to see him in the morning." Rei nodded.

"Very well." Marcus agreed. "Ah, is that not miss Rebecca?" He asked, changing the subject as the dark-haired girl approached their table. "Is there something we can do for you, lass?"

"Ah... well... um, yes." Rebecca stammered, nervously. "You're leaving tomorrow, aren't you..?"

"Here, sit down." Rei smiled, standing to give the girl her seat and pulling another over from a nearby table. "That was the plan, yes."

"Well... I was wondering if it would be alright for me to come with you." She asked. "I've already talked to my father, and he approved, but he said I needed to talk to the lord about being paid..."

"Absolutely not." Marcus told her, scowling viciously. "You did alright today, but we're going into possible danger. Besides, the road is no place for a girl your age."

"But... I want to see things. I don't want to be stuck here the rest of my life... and I'm a good shot, you saw me earlier..." Rebecca stammered, weak at first but getting stronger. "I killed three men today. I'm not a little girl any more!" By the end of her speech, she was scowling almost as fiercely as the paladin.

"Very well." The scowl faded from Marcus' face as quickly as it had arrived. "You'll do."

"What?" Rebecca blinked, stunned by the sudden reversal.

"You can come with us. We won't coddle you, though, and while you're with us, I'll expect you to train as hard as any of the knights." He paused. "We're leaving early, though. Have a bag packed. One, small. In fact, Lowen, go with her and show her what she should bring. How does two hundred gold for a six-month contract sound?"

"That's including a weapon." Rei added. "Your bow is good, but it's a hunting tool. It won't stand up to the amount of use it'll see in combat." Marcus looked at her sharply, but she met his gaze coolly until he nodded.

"Very well. Two hundred gold and your weapon." He told Rebecca, who nodded.

"I don't know what would be reasonable, but I trust you not to take advantage." She smiled at him, impishly.

"Very good. That's the standard rate you would receive if you were a member of the standing army. Sellswords usually charge more than that, depending on their reputation, but it's reasonable for a newcomer to the scene." Marcus told her, sternly. "Go pack now. We'll be turning in soon as well, so don't feel you're being sent to be early."

The young archer nodded and stood up, Lowen standing with her, and the two made their way out of the inn.

"Why did you let her come so easily, sir Marcus? I expected you to put up more of a fight" Rei asked, curious, when they were out of earshot.

"She's tough. If she were a boy, she'd likely have joined the militia. But more than that, if we don't take her with us, she'll find another way to get into trouble. This way, we can keep an eye on her." Marcus paused, then looked at Rei piercingly. "I can trust you to do that, can't I? Since she'll be your guard."

"Of course." Rei didn't take offence at the suggestion she needed a guard - as often as not, it was true - and she knew that it was only reasonable. It also gave a valid reason for them to share a tent that wouldn't offend the girls' pride. On her own, she'd probably insist on bunking with the others just to prove she could handle it. "She is good, though."

"Very. I worry that she's perhaps too good, however. Killing takes something out of a person, and she does it with dangerous ease." Marcus frowned. "You'll talk to her about that, I hope?"

"I'll do my best, sir Marcus, but she's fire-hearted." Rei told him, solemnly. "Now, about _my_ contract. I think you'll find I'm worth slightly more than thirty gold a month..."


	18. Birds of a Feather

**Disclaimer:** Nothing recognisable belongs to the author. It all belongs to Nintendo and Intelligent Systems. Some details may have been changed, but… on the whole, it's theirs. This is to be reproduced only with the author's permission, and may not be used for profit. If it is reproduced, this warning must be at the beginning of each document.

* * *

**Chapter 12 - Birds of a Feather**

"We should be able to reach the castle by nightfall, my Lord." Marcus murmured as they looked down from the crest of the bleak pass that led from Pherae north to Santaruz. "It's not a very big canton."

"Good news." Eliwood nodded. "Lets hope there are no more interruptions." He grinned, glancing at Rei. They'd been attacked several times crossing the low mountain range, and as often as not Rei had been the one to spot the ambush in time for it to be a battle rather than a slaughter.

"How powerful is Lord Helman? Militarily speaking, I mean." She asked, looking down at the terrain below. "Are bandits much of a problem?"

"Militarily, he's the second weakest of the Lycian member states after Badon. However, bandits are rarely an issue for some reason." Marcus was the one to respond.

"That's interesting... I wonder why." Rei mumbled. "Ah well, it's a mystery for another day. We should get going." With that, she walked her horse onwards down the rough-hewn road. At Eliwood's signal, the rest of the company followed.

They were at the bottom of the pass when it happened. Several large, axe and sword-wielding men stepped out of the rocks and blocked their way.

"Damn. Didn't expect there to be so many of you..." Their apparent leader, a fat axe-user commented. "Shame you all gotta die. Hm. How about this. Give me the demon girl and you can all go free back to your castle." He grinned. "How does that sound?"

"Demon girl? I assure you, there are no demons in my group, sir. You are mistaken. If there is one who has wronged you, by all means take your revenge, but we are simply travelling north." Eliwood answered, ever the peacemaker.

"Are you blind, man, or do you think we are? She sits right there!" He brandished his axe at Rei and Rebecca, who had been riding side by side. "Quickly, hand her over before whatever she's plotting with her familiar there dooms us all."

"Hey! Who are you calling a familiar?" Rebecca asked, hotly. "I'm an upstanding citizen of Pherae! I can assure you, I would not get 'familiar' with her!" The fourteen year old paused, then after a moment turned to Rei. "No offence meant to you, of course."

"None taken, but he meant you were a magically bonded servant." Rei chuckled to hide the gut-wrenching sensation at the girls' angry rejection. It wasn't that she actually felt that way towards her so much as the way it reminded her of the reactions at home.

"Oh..." Rebecca paused. "Well, I'm not one of those either!" She growled, looking at the axe man.

"No deal." Eliwood responded, calmly. "Now step aside before we're forced to do something I'll regret."

"Pah. Fine. Have at them, boys, but make sure you bring the demon to me!" The leader growled, and a moment later all ten bandits moved to the attack.

* * *

"OMIGOSH REI!" The Kanhi girls' worst fears were true. After they'd fought through the first group, a second wave had been waiting for them around a bend in the road. They would have taken heavy losses at the least if no for the timely arrival of allies in the form of Eliwood's friend from Ositia, Hector, and his companions. She'd thought she'd seen a flash of pink hair in the trees behind them, but hadn't been certain. Now that they were cleaning up, the pink-haired demoness and her blond-brunette guard had come out of the shadows and made themselves known as only Serra could.

Following the loud exclamation, Rei found that it was all she could do to stay on her feet as a hundred and thirty pounds worth of Elimine cleric, plus equipment, barrelled into her in what could only be described as a flying glomp. "I MISSED YOU SO MUCH!" Serra squealed, hugging her with rib-cracking force.

If the lack of air wasn't enough to stop her protesting, the shock was. The last time she'd had a hug was when Sara had returned to Caelin two months previously. Before that, her first ever hug since she could remember had been the near-incident with Lyn the year before, if that had even counted.

"Serra, let her breathe." A familiar voice chuckled, gently prising the cleric away. "I guess my secret is out, huh?" Matthew shrugged.

"I always did suspect, Matthew. It's good to see you again." She bowed to the thief, who returned the gesture with skill that would put many diplomats to shame.

"Did you miss me? No, I know you did! How come you're with lord Eliwood? Are you and he?" Serra babbled on rapidly. "Oh, I bet you are! Naughty Rei, he's at least two years younger than you!"

"Serra!" Matthew scolded.

"No, I am most certainly _not_, Cleric Serra." Rei told her sternly. "Put such silly thoughts out of your head. He has hired me as a tactician. The sort of behaviour you are describing is certainly not fitting of a lady of Kanhi." She hoped that the last part would reinforce the message, given the cleric's prior penchant for all things Islander. Before she'd encountered Rei, the tactician knew, she'd believed herself to be the child of Etrurian nobles as a suitably foreign country to explain her features.

"Oh. I'm sorry for saying it then." Serra babbled on in exactly the same tone, before executing a very clumsy bow.

"Have you been practicing that?" Rei blinked at her. Serra hadn't seemed the type to bow to anyone, with the (only possible) exception of the Saint.

"Yes. When Lord Hector releases me, I want to go north and find my family!" The cleric giggled behind her hand as though suggesting something silly. "So I want to be as good as I can so they're not disappointed."

"Aah.." Even to herself, Rei sounded impressed. "That's an admirable goal, but I don't think you'd like it there. Do you know why we bow?"

"Umm... no?" Serra asked, confused. "Is that important?"

"I'm curious too." Marcus said, coming up behind Rei. "This is sir Oswin, by the way, of the Ositian foot knights." He gestured to his companion, a heavily built man with short, brown hair and sideburns wearing orange plate armour. The design was different to that of the other foot knight Rei had known, General Wallace, but his armour had been specially made for him to designs built to incorporate some of the innovations that allowed it to be worn while riding that he'd picked up while visiting Ilia and Kanhi in his youth.

"Please to meet you, miss Rei." Oswin bowed in the Lycian style, with one hand in front of his stomach as though to hold his breastplate on.

"The honour is mine, sir Oswin." She bowed back, acknowledging the common address. She was technically a mercenary, meaning that it was more correct than the way most of the company called her Lady. "We bow as a gesture of submission, acknowledging the others' rank and position by offering them the backs of our necks to their swords. The deeper you bow, the lower you are claiming your own status in comparison to theirs."

"Oh, my." Serra mumbled, looking shocked. "I hadn't thought of it that way. So when you bow you're asking them to kill you?!" She sounded slightly alarmed.

"No, I'm acknowledging their right to kill me. There is a difference." Rei told her, and she nodded, still not quite understanding.

"That is very interesting." Oswin remarked. "Your people sound very warlike. I would enjoy speaking with you at length about them, however, for the moment Lord Hector wishes to meet with you."

"Very well." Rei replied, nodding. "master Matthew, cleric Serra, sir Marcus, I will speak with you later." She told the others, privately hoping that in Serra's case, it would be _much_ later.

Following Oswin across the recently cleared road, she took the chance to look around at the scenery. Yes, she'd seen it during the battle, but that had been in a vague kind of way that only took its tactical significance into consideration. At rest now, she realised that the dense woodland was somewhat foreboding. Perhaps that was the secret to Santaruz' lack of bandit problems - the forest was too creepy for the usually highly superstitious thieves and robbers who would attack a village or caravan.

"Lady Rei." Eliwood greeted her. "This is my friend, Hector. He's the Marquis' younger brother." Hector of Ositia was a massive youth, built just as strongly as his retainer Oswin. With time, he might even grow to rival General Wallace in size and bulk.

"An honour to meet you, my Lord." Rei bowed to him, and he grinned back.

"Don't worry about all that bowing and curtseying stuff with me. And just call me Hector. Matthew knows how much it bugs me when people call me by my brother." He chuckled, and Rei couldn't help but like him.

"It wouldn't be proper, lord Hector." She said, still bowed. Oswin noticed that it did indeed expose the back of her neck as her short hair slipped forward past her neck to reveal a pale strip of skin above the collar of her cloak.

"Gah. Look what you've done now, Eliwood." Hector grumbled good-naturedly before reaching out one massive paw to gently tug Rei upright. "Look, girl, I'm not likely to inherit. My brother is the Marquis, but he has a wife. I'm sure his children will be along soon. So..." He trailed off when he saw her face, before grimacing. "Oh dear. You're one of them. Please tell me you're not going to try and crush the life out of me or talk my ear off any time in the near future?"

"Er..." She blinked, not comprehending. "I beg your pardon?"

"I'm fairly certain that Serra is the odd one among her people, lord Hector." Oswin chuckled, and Rei understood.

"No, lord Hector. I won't. Most of my people are very quiet in the presence of our betters." She said diplomatically. In all likelihood, most Kanhi wouldn't consider Eliwood and his company 'betters'.

"Well, don't hesitate to speak up for us. And aren't you of noble birth yourself?" Eliwood asked, frowning slightly.

"Well, yes, Lord Eliwood, but I'm also your servant." She explained.

"Gah. You're worse than Oswin!" Hector growled.

"Thank you, sir!" The knight chuckled.

"Quiet, you." The blue-haired lord scowled. "It wasn't meant to be a good thing."

"Actually, my Lord, I'm flattered." Rei giggled into her hand. "But shouldn't we be moving on now? Will you be travelling with us, Lord Hector?"

"Of course I will! Why do you think I came all the way out here?" Hector grinned.

"I shall let sir Marcus know, my Lord." She bowed to Hector, then turned to Eliwood. "With the battle and time lost cleaning up, it seems unlikely that we will still reach the Castle while there is light. It is my advice that we make camp somewhere or find other accommodation and press on in the morning."

"I agree. Tell Marcus that we'll divert to Ellet for the night, please." Eliwood smiled at her.

"Oswin, go with her, you'll need to tell them what supplies we brought with us..." Hector told the foot knight, who nodded.

"By all means, Lord Hector." Oswin saluted, earning another scowl from his liege, and together he and Rei walked back towards Marcus and the others.

Later that night, Matthew was only slightly surprised to hear a gentle knock on the door to his room at the inn in Ellet, one of the small villages in southern Kathelet.

"Yes?" He asked, and the door opened slowly. He was lying on his back, his red cloak hanging over the back of a chair, but when he saw who had come to see him he sat up. "Lady Rei. Is something wrong?"

"No. No... as you were... I was just wondering if you wouldn't mind telling me how things are..." Rei shrugged out of her cloak and hung it next to the door, moving to sit on the chair. "Especially in Caelin, but in the north as well if you know anything."

"Mmh. Well, I know quite a lot... on a professional level. I can't tell you any secrets, of course." The some-time thief told her. "Why don't you ask questions and I'll tell you what I can?"

"Alright... what's the situation in Caelin? How is Lord Hausen and his house?" She asked, thinking of Lyn.

"They are well. Interestingly enough, since lady Eagler returned from her travels with you, she's spent much time at the castle with Lord Hausen. He's recovered well, and he's almost as healthy as he was before Lundgren's poisons. There are a few nasty rumours going around about Lyn's relationship with both her grandfather and lady Eagler, but mostly its the meaningless twittering of other nobles."

"What kind of... rumours?" Rei asked, frowning.

"Mmh, I've heard a few variations on the theme. No backbone to any of them though. Some of the other nobles' daughters still think Lyn's an impostor, or just there for the inheritance, other people seem to think that lady Eagler is a ruthless gold-digger trying to corrupt lord Hausen for the same." He waited for her disbelieving chuckle to die down before finishing. "See? Total drivel. It'll settle down soon enough."

"Okay... how about my homeland. Is there any news from Kanhi?"

"None that you'll be happy to hear, or that has any direct relevance. Things are pretty quiet, as usual."

"Wait, what do you mean that I wouldn't be happy to hear it?" Rei asked, leaning forwards. Matthew sat up again, looking solemn.

"Very bad news. It seems that House Nadeshiko really is missing more than just your betrothed. It's entirely possible that Serra really is related to them." He told her, glumly.

"Oh dear. She could get intolerable if she heard that." Rei grimaced. "Thank you for telling me, though. It would probably serve them right for me to unleash that cleric on them."

"Oh, don't be bitter." Matthew told her, chuckling. "I'm sure they can't all be that bad."

"Pretty much. Well, no, that's not true. There are a couple of them I got on alright with, but most of the family reckon those two are a disgrace anyway." Rei sighed at the memory. "Maybe once this is over I'll go rescue them, saying I need help."

"You do that." Matthew grinned. "For now, though... what's going on with the Black Fang? Those men who attacked you had the tattoo."

"Damn..." Rei muttered. "They're still after me. I still have no idea why." She shrugged. "A couple more cryptic comments about a Seer and the Lord, but..."

"It's worrying me, personally. That suggests that someone has big enough plans that they're worried enough to call in a Seer to scry the future, and if you're a problem to those plans, that could explain why they're out to get you. That they have the resources to call the Fang in to try and take you out is even more worrying. Until recently, the Fang only ever attacked corrupt lords and the like. Justice for the people and all that. More recently, though, they're just attacking people who have high enough prices on them or raise a fuss."

"Blast. Maybe I should leave the group... Eliwood's mission is too important to waste because of my problems." Rei mused.

"I don't think he'd let you go, to be honest. I haven't worked with him much, but from the young master's words, he's loyal to a fault. Besides that, I have a gut feeling that this all links up together somehow." The spy paused, thoughtfully. "The attacks on you, the sudden action on Lundgren's part last year, Lord Elbert's disappearance, Bern's war preparations, the Fang changing its' style so much... I'd heard that the Mage General was looking for mercenaries to launch an expedition to the Dread Isle, even, and that's unheard of."

"Too many things happening at once... well, I hope your gut is wrong, Matthew, really do."

"So, lady Rei, do I. So do I."


	19. Dream 1

**Dream I**

As she slept, she dreamed. She dreamed of many things - hope and love and death, dreams shared by anyone who has a soul to dream them. Most dreams were forgotten even as they concluded, but one was destined to stay with her, if only subconsciously.

She dreamed of faces, familiar yet unrecognisable. She could make out no faces or features, but knew that they were people who should be very dear to her.

Finally, she saw a face she knew. The Pheraean lord, Eliwood. They were walking together, suddenly, in the strange way that dreams switch around, but as it was a dream then it did not matter. They walked and talked a while, and were happy, though she knew not what they said. A sadness came across her, and she was leaving him, and then the faces she should know returned. They surrounded her, welcomed her, and she did not regret, despite that they took her away from her happiness. It was as though with these pink-haired spectres she was finally at home...

The dream ended, and she came away with a smile on sleeping lips... Though she would not remember the dream until events conspired to remind her.


	20. In Search of Truth

**Disclaimer:** Nothing recognisable belongs to the author. It all belongs to Nintendo and Intelligent Systems. Some details may have been changed, but… on the whole, it's theirs. This is to be reproduced only with the author's permission, and may not be used for profit. If it is reproduced, this warning must be at the beginning of each document.

* * *

**Chapter 13 - In Search of Truth**

"So what do you think of lord Eliwood, lady Rei?" Rebecca asked as they were riding towards the castle the next morning. "He's only a couple of years older than me, but he's come out here almost on his own."

"He's brave, perhaps a little full of himself, but that's to be expected from a male... especially one of high noble birth." She shrugged, slightly. "A little idealistic, maybe."

"I thought you were a noble, too, though?" Rebecca sounded more curious than surprised, and the part of Rei that was more akin to Serra than she wanted to admit told her that the whole Eliwood question was just an opening to learn more about her.

"Yes, I am, but unlike most, I have been trained to seek out the weaknesses of any given situation..." She chuckled, self-mockingly. "One person ruling over another will always breed contempt in those who rule for those who do not, or those who rule a smaller county. It is an unavoidable fact of life, no matter what the priests may teach of the natural order of everything."

"That's a depressing thing to say. Don't you think some people could be better than that?" Rebecca sounded disappointed, as though she'd been hoping for a different answer.

"Some have tried, but they have always failed in the end, often with catastrophic results. No, it is never wise to try and rise above your station, no more than it is to fall below it." Rei shrugged, apologetically.

"You don't sound too convinced yourself of that, Lady Rei!" Matthew's voice broke in. He'd clearly heard at least the last part of the conversation from where he'd fallen back from his position 'where Hector could see him'.

"If I have any doubts, they are my own." She silenced him with a look before turning her eyes back to the road. "Be on your guard, can you feel that?"

"We're being watched." Matthew nodded. "I'll warn lord Hector and lord Eliwood." He told her before moving up to the front of the column.

"I don't feel anything…" Rebecca frowned. "Are you sure?" She looked around, reaching for her bow.

"Don't draw yet. Wait until they reveal themselves, we'll be able to surprise them if they don't think we've seen them." Rei advised, quietly. A moment later, her eyes narrowed as she saw an armoured man step out onto the road in front of the Lords. They exchanged words, then the man laughed and stepped back, disappearing into the undergrowth despite his large armour.

"Who was that, lord?" Rei asked as she and her guard rode up. "I didn't recognise his livery."

"An enemy. Castle Santaruz has fallen... or is under siege. Seems likely he's in league with those fellows who stopped us at the border. Something is not right in Santaruz." Eliwood responded. "We'll have to fight our way to the castle."

"And you're complainin'?!" The axeman, Bartre, instantly recognisable by his frill of hair and blue muscle-shirt asked before rushing off ahead of the group.

"Blast that man. Bringing him was a mistake." Rei muttered with a glance at Dorcas. "lord Hector, sir Oswin, Dorcas, go with him. You too, Matthew."

"What about the rest of us, lady Rei?" Eliwood asked, frowning. "Those five won't be able to take the castle alone."

"Of course not." Rei resisted the urge to roll her eyes. A natural born fighter, Eliwood might be, but he had a lot to learn about strategy. "There must be more than one approach to the castle in this terrain. You know this area, lead us around the back, lord Eliwood. You'll notice that our most solid men are set in that group, with the exception of Matthew. He'll know his part, though. They'll keep the enemies' main force busy, while we gain entry into the castle."

"There's a way around to the West." Marcus added. "The castle's built in a rocky basin with only a few ways down. Fortunately, I know of one rather less well travelled than the main path to the south our impetuous axeman friend has taken."

* * *

"At every turn! Why?" Rei banged her fist against the wall angrily. Let Eliwood and Hector mourn for lord Helman, she knew that there was something subtly wrong here, and she couldn't figure out what.

"At least there's one good thing that's come out of this..." Matthew sighed, appearing form nowhere as was his wont.

"If you mean your swordsman friend, I suppose you're right, but he's not especially bright, is he?" Rei sighed. "No, that's uncharitable. He's just inexperienced. What can I do for you, Matthew?" She turned to lean against the wall with her head back, closing her eyes. Why she trusted the Ositian ninja, she wasn't sure, but she did.

"Actually, I meant the fact we have actually learned something here. Whatever the Fang's employer is up to, it's not limited to his interest in you. The knight who called the young master out was one of them, and I think a few of his grunts were members as well." Matthew leaned on the opposite wall, beside a rich tapestry of workers in the fields, and folded his arms under his cloak.

"With that and the Lahus connection, I suppose we do have something to go on... so we're not totally lost. This is getting so _complicated_ though." Rei sighed, her anger fading as she realised that mostly she was angry at herself. "I need a coffee." She brought her hands up to rub at her face in an attempt to clear her eyes. "Join me?"

"No time, we're leaving." Eliwood's voice broke in, new steel reinforcing it as he and Hector came out of the room they'd found Helman's body in. "Darin must know something, and we're going to find out." The lords didn't wait, simply striding off down the corridor towards the stables.

"No rest for the wicked." Matthew chuckled, pushing off the wall with a long-suffering sigh. "Cheer up, lady Rei. There's only a few hours till darkness, and it should be a quiet night now that we've cleared out the local toughs from half the league."

* * *

"A quiet night, he said..." Rei growled, drawing on the strength from the ring to push up and away to hurl the swordsman whose weapon she'd parried away from her. "Matthew, I'm going to kill you if we survive this!"

"Kyah! I think they'll do it for you at this rate!" The thief yelped as he ducked a wild fireball. "I'm sorry, I'll never try prediction again!"

"Oh, oh my! Please be careful! Um, honourable sir, look out behind you! Oh my, oh my... eek!" The moustachioed merchant squealed, and Rei span to lodge a throwing dagger in his assailant's eye even as Guy's sword spitted the axeman through the stomach. They were fighting a desperate defensive action against what seemed to be a horde of bandits, all for the sake of this simpering weakling. Still, she supposed, it was what the lords were _supposed_ to do with their skills, so she couldn't begrudge them their duty. If only it didn't happen on this night, after a long day's fighting, and still before she'd had her coffee.

"Back off!" She growled at a bandit wizard with dark power glowing around his hands before launching her last throwing knife into his hand and following it up with her fighting blade to his throat. "Matthew, find their leader! Sir Oswin, just keep holding that bridge! Sir Marcus, sir Lowen, get ready to move out on Matthew's signal! Rebecca, cover me!" Under the volley of arrows, she recovered as many of her valuable blades as she could before retreating to the relative safety of the island they were holding against the horde. Moving back behind Guy to catch her breath, she saw flashes of the other two weak points to their island refuge. The river was wide enough to be impassable without bridges, and this small outcropping had been chosen as the site for three of them – two to one side, and a wider one to the other. Oswin and Dorcas, the latter throwing hand axes past the knight's defensive bastion with incredible skill, were holding one of the twin bridges while Hector and Eliwood held the other. That had left herself, Rebecca, Matthew and Guy to defend the wider bridge, keeping the cavaliers, Serra and Bartre in reserve. With Matthew going on his scouting mission, Bartre moved up to take his place even as Serra used her staff as a focus to spread her holy power over the area in a thin sheet. It was possible that the only thing keeping Eliwood and Guy fighting was that power as another wave of Bandits marshalled to attack. Even Dorcas was starting to look tired, though Hector and Oswin showed no sign of fatigue. The lord even seemed to be enjoying himself somewhat.

"Come on, you pansies! Surely you've got someone with a bit of substance hiding back there!" Hector challenged. "I'm getting bored of cutting away the chaff to find out there's no wheat inside!"

"Lord Hector, stop mixing metaphors and concentrate on what you are doing." Oswin called over disapprovingly even as he thrust his footman's lance through a fire-wielding mage. At that moment, a piercing shriek split the air from the northwest.

"That's Matthew's signal. Cavaliers, charge! Oswin, clear the way!" Rei called, and the foot knight swept his spear from one side to the other, knocking several attackers down to be trampled by Marcus and Lowen as their horses thundered across the bridge towards where the signal had come from.

"What do _we_ do now?" Guy asked, panting as he caught a minor reprieve.

"Back to plan A." Rei grimaced, kicking an axe-wielder even as he tore a chunk out of her cloak.

"Kill them all?" Bartre asked with a savage grin and a sweep of his axe.

"Kill them all." Hector agreed as he tossed a hand axe with his right hand, Wolf Beil held in his left as usual.


	21. False Friends

**Disclaimer:** Nothing recognisable belongs to the author. It all belongs to Nintendo and Intelligent Systems. Some details may have been changed, but… on the whole, it's theirs. This is to be reproduced only with the author's permission, and may not be used for profit. If it is reproduced, this warning must be at the beginning of each document.

* * *

**Chapter 14 - False Friends**

"Something isn't right, here..." Rei muttered, looking around the deserted farmland.

"It's just like Caelin last year." Dorcas grunted with a scowl. He didn't elaborate, but Rei knew what he meant. The fields went untended, and it looked like they'd been left that way for months.

"You were mixed up in that too, weren't you?" Hector glanced at Eliwood, who nodded. They were riding at the front of the column in front of the two mercenaries.

"Yes, for a little bit. Rei or Matthew could tell you more, since they both saw it through to the end." Eliwood replied before pausing. "Where is that little thief, anyway?"

"You ask me like I have a clue these days. Last I saw, he was conspiring with your tactician." Hector shrugged, disgruntled. "Still, Laus, huh? What's with that? I hope that mutt Erik's not around."

"Where else would he be? Come on, Erik's not that bad." Eliwood temporised. "I'd rather deal with him than his father. Darin is a worthy Lord, but something about him irritates me."

"He's a bitter old bastard, and you know it." Hector punched his friend's arm. "You don't have to be so nice all the time, especially when no-one's around to hear it."

Further down the column, the conversation was somewhat lighter as Marcus and Lowen formed the rearguard with Merlinus.

"These are excellent. You really must give Lowen the recipe, Merlinus." Marcus unbent enough to smile at the merchant, who looked like he was about to faint with shock. He had, after all, just endured a full tactical analysis of not only the pastries, but his entire operation at the hands of the old knight.

"Umm, well, of course, I'd be delighted when we must part ways..." the merchant stuttered, feeling nervous about imposing his will on the bitten old warrior. "But before then, it would be bad business..."

"Nonsense! Unskilled as he is with lance and sword, squire Lowen grew up in the castle kitchens. I'm certain that with his help, you could make more than enough to sell at our next rest point, but you must surely struggle on your own!" sir Marcus chuckled, while Lowen shrank down even more so that he was practically huddled into his saddle. If only Marcus would recognise his efforts for once...

Lowen frowned, suddenly, and looked up. He could have sworn he'd heard something...

"Sir Marcus, there are cavalry coming up the road towards us, and lord Hector is moving away from the group." He reported, confused.

"Hmm. Those are Laus colours - lord Darin's Housecarls, I think. They must be an honour guard." Marcus reassured the squire, who nodded. "I'm less sure about the foot knights who seem to be moving in behind us, however. They're not wearing colours."

Lowen did a double-take as he looked behind him. He could have sworn that the four armoured warriors hadn't been there when he'd checked behind them five minutes ago, but Marcus made it sound as though he'd known about them for miles... Then, another sound rang in his ears. Swords were being drawn all around them.

"It's a trap!" Lowen yelled, grabbing for his lance.

* * *

Priscilla grimaced to herself as she approached the pink-haired priestess attending the injured. This group looked rough, but she had a duty to perform. Her skills as a healer weren't as great as those of the cleric in front of her, but with the staff-wielding powers came responsibility. 

"Ex... excuse me, is there anything I can do to help..?" She asked, but took a step back when she saw the manic gleam in the Elimane's eyes.

"Yes! You can use staffs? Good! Come here! Rebecca needs healing, she's got a fractured ulna and a pierced lung." The madwoman's voice was rapid, firing off quick-fire orders to a green-haired boy and an old woman wearing black to stem the bleeding from a steel-haired knight's shoulder.

'_Perhaps the pressure just got to her and she'll be fine later..._' Priscilla grimaced, and got to work saving the young archer girl's life.

* * *

"It's confirmed, then?" Rei asked with a disappointed sigh.

"Yes. The Black Fang have been here, and the state has been preparing to go to war." Matthew nodded. "There's more, though. Darin's lot were last seen fleeing towards Caelin. He's only got the tatters of an army, but..."

"Caelin's barely recovered from Lundgren. Kent is a good man, but even with Raven's help, their militia is under-strength, and so are their household troops." Rei grimaced at the implications. "We need to catch up, but Eliwood's insisting on staying here until he's convinced Erik will do the right thing. Leaving that man in charge is a mistake... Erik, I mean, not Eliwood."

"I'm sure." Matthew grinned, then nodded sombrely. "I agree, though. We don't have much choice, though. Ositia can't annex a member state until its entire ruling family is dead, and executing Erik wouldn't be a good move politically."

"Thing are so much simpler in Kanhi!" Rei sighed. "Oh, I don't know if you saw him, but Erk is around somewhere. I'd appreciate it if you could find him, and Dorcas, too, if you could. I'm sure they'd like to catch up..."

Less than twenty minutes later, between them Matthew and Rei had gathered a small group of people together in the stables. Erk was there, as were Dorcas and Guy, and a red-haired woman who, to Rei's eye at least, looked somewhat familiar. Rei was sitting on a bale of hay, while the others stood or sat on the floor around the room. Matthew himself leaned against a wooden pillar next to where Rei sat.

"Rei, when you asked me to find those two, I didn't think you were gathering an army. What's up?" Matthew asked, frowning. He was starting to worry about the look in the small islander's eye. Her body-language was different to everyone else he knew, but he was getting better at reading her, and now it looked like she was planning something. He looked again at the group gathered, and realised that with the exception of Guy and Priscilla, who's allegiances were to people in this room rather than the two Lords, all of them had been in Caelin with them.

"I've asked you to be here because I have a favour to ask of you all. I've been unable to convince lord Eliwood, but _we_ all know that there's no way Caelin can stand up to an attack by lord Darin. I'm going to leave tonight and try to get ahead of that force to at least give Caelin some warning. I would like to approach as reinforcements rather than simply messengers. All I ask of those who don't come with me is that they wait until tomorrow morning to inform lord Eliwood of this decision. The rest - if any of you do decide to come, please, be ready in a half an hour..."

"What if they're attacked tonight? Lord Eliwood will need us to protect this place." Erk asked with a frown. "Not that I have any real desire to spend more time than necessary with Serra, but…"

"He still has the knights. Between Hector, Oswin and Marcus, I'd be surprised if any enemies dared enter the castle." Matthew pointed out with a chuckle. "Of course, I have to go if anyone does, so…"

"I'd like to come, but you know I have to think of Natalie first. I can't come with you unless lord Eliwood releases me to do so…" Dorcas spoke regretfully after a moment.

"I understand. Guy? Priscilla?" Rei looked at the other two. She had hoped Dorcas would come, but hadn't held out much hope. She herself felt torn – yes, she was on contract to obey Eliwood, and this felt almost like oath-breaking… but she had to make sure Lyn and her family were alright. If something happened to them… she knew this was the right thing to do.

"Well, if Matthew goes, I have to." Guy glared at the thief, resentfully. "I'd rather stay here, though, to be honest. I'm curious about some of Eliwood's sword forms…"

"I think it's a noble thing to do." Priscilla gave Guy a dirty look. "I'll come along with you, and so will Erk. I'll also write lord Eliwood a letter of excuse… Dorcas, if you would give it to him in the morning?" The red-haired noble glanced at their axeman friend, who nodded.

"Unh." He agreed, folding his arms.

"You know, Guy, Lyn's a pretty dangerous lady herself. You could probably learn a lot from her." Matthew put in, to Rei's surprise. She hadn't thought he would be too eager for this himself. "Besides, I have to keep an eye on them to make sure there's nothing perfidious going on, so I'm damned if I'm going without a decent sword-arm on my side."

"Well, if it's agreed, then… Priscilla, please write your letter. I'm sure lord Eliwood will understand." Rei nodded and stood up. "We'll meet back here in half an hour."

* * *

"Rei's gone." Hector told Eliwood, bluntly. "Matthew's with her, so we'll know if she does anything suspicious."

"I don't like it. I told her to stay here. Lyn can look after herself for a day or two, but we _can't_ leave this place in such a mess." Eliwood scowled, his boyishly handsome features distorted by the expression. "On her own, it wouldn't be so bad, but she took half the force with her. Damn it, I thought I could trust her!"

"You can. You just have to remember that she's got a mind of her own. I think it's a good thing she's gone. It doesn't sit right with me to stand around here while Lycia is in danger. Besides, I thought you had a thing for the Marquis' grand-daughter?"

"Hector," Eliwood said seriously. "This isn't the time for your teasing!"

"Sure it is. Eliwood, listen to me. I don't want you punishing her, or any of her group, when we catch up with them. Alright?" The blue-haired lord took his friend by the shoulders and looked down into his eyes. "The only way you're going to save face here is to act as though they went under your orders. We still have the knights, as well as those two axe-wielders you hired and…" He twitched before saying the last name, "Serra. Not to mention lady Hannah. "

"Hannah? What possible use will that old lady be if we're attacked? I don't believe in fortunetellers, Hector. She's a fake!"

"She's not, you know. She told me they'd leave, and she was right. Who cares if what she does is magic, or just reading the situation… she's accurate enough. Come, now, lets get this lot sorted…" He sat down at the desk, ready to get to work on the papers set in front of him.

Outside, dark forces gathered…


	22. Noble Lady of Caelin

**Disclaimer:** Nothing recognisable belongs to the author. It all belongs to Nintendo and Intelligent Systems. Some details may have been changed, but… on the whole, it's theirs. This is to be reproduced only with the author's permission, and may not be used for profit. If it is reproduced, this warning must be at the beginning of each document.

* * *

**Chapter 15 - Noble Lady of Caelin**

"Damnit, where is Eubans? He should have returned hour ago! Ephidel! Explain yourself!" Marquess Darin of Laus glared around for his henchman, his overshot jaw and heavy forehead giving him the appearance of a grumpy old Silverback gorilla.

"Here, lord Darin. What is it you wish?" The black-cloaked man appeared from the shadows of the trees. His voice was almost as greasy as his hair, but Darin supposed he had his uses.

"Where are my mercenaries? We can't attack until they return." Darin demanded. "If you've sent them off somewhere without telling me again, I may have to rethink the bounds of our agreement!"

"Have no fears, my lord. Eubans himself decided to send a unit of his men to unseat the Pheraean pretender. He himself has just entered the camp with the rest of his forces. 'ware the Wyvern rider, my lord. His heart is too soft for this work. It would be better to send him on another mission during this assault. Your first targets _must_ be the ruling Marquess and his grand-daughter."

"Very well. Carry the message to the troops, we will strike at dawn.**  
**

* * *

"So, that's the story..." Lyn grimaced. "We're lucky you got here first." She sighed, and looked between Rei and her grandfather. "We can't defend the castle, grandfather. Even with Rei's reinforcements, from what she and her companions have said, Darin's forces are too strong."

"We also cannot allow them to just walk in and take over. Caelin has suffered too much to allow that warmongering young fool to undo all our hard work in healing the land and people." Hausen frowned. "Miss Rei, you are a tactician. What is your suggested course of action?"

"I..." She paused, thoughtfully. "I can't see a way to win this battle outright. We have only two chances. Either we lay in for a siege until lord Eliwood and lord Hector come to our aid, or..." She paused, the other idea not sitting well with her. "We give them the castle and wage a guerrilla war against them, wearing them down until our forces are strong enough. That would cost more lives, because we couldn't simply abandon the castle, we'd have to make them think they'd defeated us. If they have siege engines, though - and just because Matthew didn't find any signs of them doesn't mean they don't have them, or even war mages - then we won't be able to hold out for long. Castle Caelin is barely defensible these days." Rei sighed, wishing she could give them better news. All three of them knew that the only way they'd survive was by abandoning the castle at the cost of the lives of the knights.

"You must go, then, Lyndis." Hausen stood up and walked, stiffly, to the curtained window. Lifting aside the heavy drape, he looked out into the darkness of the Lycian night. "Take your unit, and any others who will go with you. Armsmaster Raven will stay here to guard the castle and its lord."

"You can't stay here, grandfather!" Lyn protested. "You'll be killed for sure!"

"He has to, lady Lyn..." Rei murmured. "Otherwise the ruse won't take."

"Quite right." Hausen nodded, still looking into the darkness. "Besides, even if I were well enough to travel, I'm worth more to them alive and controllable than dead. They won't kill me, Lyndis. Darin is too cowardly for that."

"But grandfather..." Lyn started, and Rei was taken aback by how... whiny she sounded.

"You're too good to me, child. Miss Rei, you won't let anything happen to my granddaughter, will you?" Finally, the old marquess turned to look at them.

"I will die before her, my lord." Rei swore, bowing. In any other circumstances, the stunned, slightly panicked look on her face would have made Lyn giggle as Hausen suddenly embraced her.

"You're too precious yourself for such oaths, and I know that you're not a warrior. Look after this one, Lyndis." It was the Sacaean's turn for a hug, though she bore it more gracefully than the Kanhi girl. "Now, go, gather your Legion and prepare. I want you out of the castle by daybreak."

* * *

"Lord Raymond, please, wait!" The high voice was almost out of the bounds of acceptability for a male, and if Priscilla Cornwell hadn't recognised it with the certainty of someone who has seen two horse-carts careening towards each other with no chance of stopping, she would have been hard pressed to reconcile it with the man... boy, really, she had known. Picking up her skirts, she broke into a run to chase the sound. Coming around the corner, however, she stopped and stared.

"L... lord Lucius..." She whispered, then saw past the blonde man to the dour redhead he had cornered. "And... Raymond..."

Raven glared at his companion in irritation. He had work to do, and the monk had chosen that_exact_ moment to tell him that there was someone he needed to meet, refusing to listen to any reason or argument even as the mercenary Armsmaster has strode through the lower halls. The sound of running feet made him refocus past his childhood companion's angelic face to see another visage he had never thought to witness again. She was older, yes, but still young enough to still have that same innocence of face and bearing.

"Priscilla..?" He blinked. "What in the scouring is going on here?" He grumbled, then looked back at Lucius. "If this is your idea of a joke..." He trailed off, threateningly.

"It's no joke, lord Raymond. As I told you, you needed to meet this person before the battle tomorrow." Lucius half-turned so that he could see them both. "Lady Priscilla, it has been so long. I only wish our meeting could be under more favourable circumstances."

"I... I share that wish..." The troubadour mumbled, clearly still struggling with the situation that confronted her. "Lord brother, are you not happy to see me..?" She took one step forward, then another, hesitantly.

"Priscilla. Go home. This is no place for you. Take Lucius with you, if you will." Raven said, curtly, and turned to stride off into the darkness of the armouries, leaving those who would follow him into hell to watch him go, speechless.

"I'm sorry." Rei sighed as she watched Lyn pack. "I really didn't want it to be this way..."

"He will be alright, won't he? He wasn't just saying that to make it easier for me to go?" Lyn's voice was carefully controlled, but her friend couldn't tell if it was tears or anger that made it so.

"He wasn't just saying it, no. It's true," she confirmed. "He's no good to Darin dead. Besides, he's tough, your grandfather. It'd take more than Darin has to kill him." Her tone was encouraging, but she hoped that her own doubts wouldn't come through. "What about Sara? I haven't seen her since we arrived. Has she gone back to her mothers' estate?"

"No, she's still here. She refused to come away with us, though. She'll be with grandfather when they come..."

"There's something you're not telling me, isn't there?" Rei frowned slightly.

"You remember when we first arrived here, Sara was very fond of my grandfather? It hasn't abated since she returned from travelling with you. I'm just worried that she'll do something stupid to protect him." Lyn sighed. "I'm done. We should meet with the others in the stable. I think Hunt's missed you, you know."

"How are the horses, anyway? I wasn't sure how Hunt would hold up away from the plains."

"She foaled a few weeks ago. The foal shows signs of Lenoré's bloodline characteristics." Lyn grinned at the happier thought. "My father would throw a fit if he knew I was letting her breed with outclan stallions, but..."

"Heh. I'm going to trust you on that, I know nothing about horsebreeding." Rei chuckled. "How about you? Found anyone interesting?" Despite the lightness off her tone, Rei felt fear grip her heart at the potential replies.

"No... I've not been looking, to be honest. There's been so much to do." She shrugged, dismissing the subject. "Lets go."

The two women made their way to the stable where the others who were departing with them waited. Kent and Sain, Wil, Florina, Matthew, Guy, Erk and a somewhat shaken-looking Priscilla waited with them along with two other Caelin knights.

"My Lady." Kent saluted. "We are ready to depart. What is our mission?"

"Disruption and confusion. You know of Marquess Darin's army approaching us. The tactical situation is clear - the castle cannot stand against this attack. We are going to ground outside to harry their forces until lords Eliwood and Hector arrive with reinforcements." Rei spoke quickly. "Before you raise any objections, knight commander, you were chosen to lead this unit rather than the castle defence because of your experience with mobile combat. Armsmaster Raven has the castle defence."

"Do we know they plan to invade?" Sain asked, uncertainly. "Marquess Darin is a pompous mule, but he's never caused any problems before."

"His canton has been preparing for war. His intentions are clear." Matthew answered. "You remember that, until last year, Lord Lundgren made no move to secure his inheritance until Wiseman appeared in the castle. From my own activities, I have determined that around the time of Wiseman's disappearance, a man named Ephidel appeared in Darin's court, making appearances in Santaruz and Pherae as well. Ephidel is, as far as I could tell, identical to miss Rei's description of Wiseman."

"But I killed Wiseman." Lyn frowned. "There's no way someone could survive a wound like that."

"I know. It's a mystery, and I don't like it." The thief frowned. "Still, if we assume that Wiseman was the reason for Lundgren's change in policy, I think it's safe to say that this Ephidel is the cause of Darin's change also." Shrugging, he finished his theory and fell silent.

"That's a discussion for later, I think. Lets move out for now." Lyn interjected, and the knights saluted before as a group moving out. Travelling with Lyndis' Legion, even without Dorcas, Rath or the siblings, felt worryingly like coming home to Rei.

* * *

"I've sighted them up ahead, but it looks like the castle has fallen." Rebecca reported. She and Lowen had been scouting ahead of the main group. It was now the third day since Darin's defeat at Laus.

"Blast it, we're too late!" Hector swore, glaring at Eliwood. "If you'd only..."

"Time for recriminations when we can afford them. Rebecca, did you see any sign that Lord Hausen or his family had been captured?" The Pheraean barely glanced at either of them, staring instead in the direction of the castle.

"No, lord Eliwood, none." Rebecca replied, relieved. A strange intensity had come over the lord these past few days, unsettling in the least to those he paid any attention to. Even Marcus preferred not to meet his gaze when he was like this.

"Good, Darin's the type to leave heads on pikes. Gather the company, we'll take the castle back then search for Darin and Hausen." He turned away as Rebecca went to pass on the message, but stopped as Hector caught his eye.

"I don't know why you've become like this, but I don't like it. You're getting cold, Eliwood. Turning into..." Anything else Hector might have said was cut off as he glanced upwards and his eyes widened. Opening his arms, he caught the tiny woman who fell from the sky. "Well, hello, miss. I don't think we've..."

"Huey." Eliwood mumbled, making Hector blink then follow his gaze upwards. A moment later, the ninety-pound Pegasus knight in his arms was stood behind him as the heavy axeman held up his bracers protectively against an irate five hundred and eighty pound Pegasus attempted to batter his skull in.

"Huey, stop! It's okay, he caught me, they're friends!" Florina lunged for her mount's bridle and pulled his head around. "Huey! Listen to me. That's lord Eliwood's friend you're attacking." After a few moments, the Pegasus calmed down and stood quietly. "I-I'm sorry, sir, he's b-been on edge since we f-fell back." She said, turning to Hector and saluting nervously. "You're l-lord Hector? I'm F-F-Florina, of Lyndis' Legion. Lady Lyndis has me k-keeping an eye on things from the sky." Turning to Eliwood, she saluted again. "Lord Eliwood. R-Rei made it in time to warn us, but we c-couldn't hold the castle. We retreated, and we've been m-making guerrilla raids on their f-forces, but..."

"Thankyou." Eliwood smiled for the first time since Rei's defection. "If we can co-ordinate with Lyn's unit, taking back the castle should be much easier. Is lord Hausen with you?"

"N-no, he's still in the castle. He stayed behind to c-c-co-ordinate the defence with the Armsmaster." Florina stammered.

"That's frustrating. Alright, in the absence of specialist advice, here's what we're going to do..."


	23. Whereabouts Unknown

**Disclaimer:** Nothing recognisable belongs to the author. It all belongs to Nintendo and Intelligent Systems. Some details may have been changed, but… on the whole, it's theirs. This is to be reproduced only with the author's permission, and may not be used for profit. If it is reproduced, this warning must be at the beginning of each document.

* * *

**Chapter 16 - Whereabouts Unknown**

Raven scowled as he watched the Ositian troops coming down the corridor towards him. It didn't really sit well with him to be defending the castle against Lyn's allies, but for a chance at Uther... no, that wasn't... It must be Hector, then. The younger brother. Still, better him than no-one. Raising his iron blade, the mercenary charged down the corridor in perfect silence, his grim visage surely terrifying to behold. Still, the axeman sidestepped the first blow, then caught the second on his bracer, forcing the sword to the side and raising his axe. The man's strength was immense, Raven realised, drawing back and disengaging his sword from the spikes on Hector's armour only to find a cold blade at his back.

"I left the defence of this castle in your hands, Raven, but I didn't expect you to defend it from _me_." Lyn's voice was cold, and in that moment, he was reminded of his own mortality.

"My lady. Forgive me, but I've sworn to destroy house Ositia." He told her, while Hector looked on with a somewhat puzzled expression.

"I see. I must ask you to put aside your quarrel with them for now, and for as long as you serve my family." The Sacaean didn't take her blade away from Raven's neck until he nodded.

"As you wish, lady Lyndis." He nodded, turning. "The remains of the garrison are locked in the chapel along with brother Lucius. Darin's men have his key, but I have the spare. Darin's already fled, but his advisor and a red-headed woman have your grandfather and lady Eagler in his chambers. The throne room is held by one of his knights, but Ephidel and the woman, Leila, are the more dangerous. He's a mage of some kind, and she seems to be assassin-trained."

"Did you say a redhead called Leila?" Hector sounded surprised, then laughed. "I'd wondered where he'd sent her off to! Lyndis, take Matthew with you, and Oswin, and go to your grandfather. Eliwood and I will take the rest of the force to the throne room and capture this knight."

"Alright, if you think that's best. Raven, go free Lucius and your men then join Eliwood and Hector." Lyn told her armsmaster, before looking for Matthew. He and a middle-aged knight with sideburns were moving towards her, along with Rei.

"Lyn, good luck. I'll be needed to co-ordinate the main assault, but..." The Kanhi told her, stepping forward to press the power ring into her hand. "Something tells me you'll need that sooner than I will."

"Are you sure? You're not the strongest fighter here..." Lyn asked, worriedly. "If something happened..."

"I'll be fine. I've got an entire army to look after me... Oswin is strong, but he's only one man." Rei smiled. "Go, your grandfather needs you."

Lyn bit her lip, then nodded, turning and moving off in the direction of lord Hausen's chambers, Oswin and Matthew at her back.

* * *

Rei hid her grimace in her hands as she listened to Leila's report with the other Lords. This was not good news. Valor... how were they going to reach Valor? But that was where Darin had gone, and that was where they would follow.

Worse, though, was the fact that islands like Valor attracted those like her betrothed who sought to find inner balance through perfect combat. With luck, he wouldn't be there, but... luck wasn't something Rei liked to believe in.

"Thank you, Leila. What can you tell us about Ephidel, and the Black Fang?" Hector asked, continuing to question the thief-spy.

"Ephidel is... not human, or if he is, he's from nowhere I've heard of. Pitch-black hair, almost translucent skin, and golden eyes that stare right through you aren't signs of a normal person. He seems to be in charge of the Black Fang who have allied themselves with Darin, which is confusing. The Fang are a group of assassins based in Biran who usually target corrupt nobles and tyrants, yet now they're allying themselves with the very same. I can't help but feel that Ephidel, and perhaps others like him, are behind the change." Leila shook her head. "It doesn't give me a good feeling, sir."

"Should I pull you off? If it's so unsettling, it could become dangerous for you to remain with the Fang." Hector frowned in concern.

"No, I'll stay. Your brother asked me to investigate this, and I have a duty to him. The life of a spy is always dangerous, sir." She smiled back, then stood. "If I am not to arouse suspicion, however, I must leave now."

"Go." Hector nodded. He spoke again just as she opened the door. "And Leila? Be careful."

"Always, sir." She winked at him, before pulling the door closed behind her.

"Well. This is unwelcome news. We must travel to Badon in the morning, Hector." Eliwood decided. "Darin... Ephidel. They're all mixed up in this somehow."

"I don't doubt it. Ephidel... he sounds much like the Wiseman who corrupted my granduncle." Lyn spoke up for the first time. "By your leave, I would accompany you, my Lords." She looked at the Pheraean and Ositian representatives. "My grandfather will recover with lady Sara and her distaffs' aid, there's no need for me to remain here this time..."

"Lyn, are you sure?" Eliwood asked, frowning slightly. "Your grandfather might..."

"He'll be fine. I'll speak with him before we leave if he's awake, get his blessing, but I will come with you." The Sacaean scowled. "They have spilled the blood of my allies, my friends, and my family. I cannot allow this to stand."

"Well, I'm not going to complain." Hector stopped Eliwood from objecting further. "Come on, El, she's good with a sword, she's determined... what right do we have to stop her coming?"

"I suppose. Very well. Will your knights be accompanying us?" Eliwood asked, giving in.

"I doubt they would permit me to leave without them." Lyn chuckles. "I believe that Raven will wish to come with us as well, though, Hector... so I'd be careful if I were you. He really has an axe to grind."

"I know. I'll keep my eye open for him, don't worry." Hector grinned. "He's no match for me anyway."

"I'm not so sure..." Rei muttered, looking up at last. "He's got a mean streak." Finally, she stood. "I don't know about you three, but I, personally, am in need of refreshment. It has been a long day, and I for one haven't been able to eat much. I know how much that ring take it out of you, Lyn, so you'd better find something to eat too." She looked at the others. "Lord Eliwood, if I might be dismissed?" She asked, and the redhead nodded.

"Oh, one thing first," He stopped her, "On Hector's advice, I will allow this latest infraction to pass, but disobey me again and we will be forced to discuss the terms of your contract. Are we clear, Tactician?"

"As spring water, lord Eliwood." Rei bowed, conservatively, before leaving with Lyn. Before the door shut, she could already hear Hector chastising Eliwood for his manners – an odd turnabout, considering their attitudes at the start of this journey.

"Rei? What was that about?" Lyn asked, frowning. "You broke orders?"

"To bring you warning, yes." She shook her head. "He refused to allow us to send even a runner with a warning, but I couldn't just let you face that on your own... you don't think any less of me for it, do you, lady Lyn..?"

"No. I'm glad that you did, but... please... don't do it again. I don't want him to force you to leave the group." Lyn sighed and shook her head. "Thank you for coming. I don't know if we could have survived without your warning."

"It was just something I had to do..." Rei smiled, and they walked on in companionable silence for a few moments. They were taking a slightly longer route than they might to get to the kitchens, but it at least gave them time to talk in relative private.

"Ah... Rei..." Lyn started, hesitantly. "About... when we parted ways last year... Were you... I mean..." She realised that she was blushing slightly, and hated herself a little bit as she realised that Rei was, too, and looking a little uncomfortable about it.

"Ah... ano..." Rei mumbled, looking away. "You see..." At that moment, she was knocked flying by a sideburn-sporting knight rushing in the other direction. Lyn spared a moment to glare at his retreating back, a stray thought hitting her that he looked very strange without his orange armour before rushing to Rei's side and helping her up.

"Are you okay..?" She asked, and the Kanhi islander nodded with a grimace.

"I just banged my head, nothing serious." She grumbled, rubbing the sore spot. "Have you got any ice..?"

"There's some in the deep cellars... lets get you to the kitchen and I'll go and cut some." Lyn sighed, wanting to get an answer but knowing that the moment had passed. She was going to bloody _kill_ Oswin next time she saw him.


	24. The Port of Badon

**Chapter 16x – The Port of Badon**

Rei grimaced as she looked down at the port town. This was going to _hurt_. It was only a few months since the last time she'd been in the Pirate City, and that wasn't long enough – according to the whims of her geas – before it was worth checking again.

"Well, this is it. Our ticket to Valor lies down there." Hector looked almost eager to get down into the town. "Along with pirates and riff-raff just waiting to try and rip off a travelling Lord."

"And if you wade in to try and sort things out with your axe, it'll be your face that gets ripped off, rather than your wallet, young Master." Matthew told him, cheerfully. "Just leave the talking to me."

"You, Matthew?" Eliwood looked at the thief sceptically. "You'd have us empty the royal treasury before we could even open our mouths."

"No, that would be far too inefficient." Matthew chuckled. "You can't just walk in there like you own the place, though. I'm serious."

"What do you suggest we do, then..?" Lyn asked, frowning slightly. Pirates were no better than bandits in her mind. Just a different species of the same breed, really.

"Gambling, lady Lyndis." Matthew's smile grew. "Any captain willing to take us to Valor is going to have a sense of adventure and will probably adore risk. We'll just have to stack the game in our favour somehow."

"I don't like risking my father on a game, spy." Eliwood frowned. "There must be a better way."

"No better way, my Lord." Matthew sighed. "Anything else really would empty our coffers to the bottom, and Merlinus' too."

"What do you think, Rei?" Eliwood looked at the silent tactician.

"Matthew is right." It wasn't what he wanted to hear, but her dark eyes didn't lie. "A wager is the best way. There's a captain here, Fargus by name. He'll be our best bet. I'll have to stay out of sight on this one though."

"Why? Have you been here before?" Lyn asked, frowning slightly. "He didn't try anything, did he?"

"I was here a couple of months ago." She nodded. "He was a perfect gentleman, he just... disagrees with my devotion to my quest. Told me if he ever saw me again he'd... well." she blushed a little at the memory.

"I see." Hector sounded amused. "But you think we should talk to this Fargus fellow?"

"Yes." Rei nodded. "He's the captain of the Davros, a converted trade schooner."

"I've heard of him, too." Matthew told them, unsurprisingly. "He's good for his word. A gentleman pirate. Not a bad sort, unless you've got something he wants."

"I don't like it." Lyn grimaced. "Dealing with sea bandits... it doesn't sit well with me."

"I know, lady Lyn..." Rei sighed, softly. "Please, just bear with it... for a little while."

"I guess I'll have to ratify Matthew and Rei's plan." Eliwood sighed. "Sorry, Lyndis."

"It won't be so bad." Hector grinned. "Besides, it'll offer plenty of chances for pirate bashing when we're on the boat."

"I suppose..." Lyn still looked uncertain, but she accepted his words as the army started to move. She had no real choice.

* * *

Rei allowed herself to drift towards the back of the group as they moved down into the town, expecting at any moment for the pain of the geas to strike her as she got too close to the area.

"Lady Rei..." She turned at the voice to see the concerned face of Lucius as he approached her.

"Brother Lucius. Is there something I can help you with?" She asked, managing to smile as the first twinges his her, warning her to turn away.

"You seem troubled. Is there perhaps something I can help with?" He offered with a knowing look.

"I..." Rei hesitated, then nodded, slowly. "You remember, then. Yes... please. What do you know of healing?"

"A little. You are apprehensive of the pain... yes?" He inclined his head, slightly. "If it would help... I can make a Dagga and Valerian tea that will put you to sleep for a few hours, hopefully long enough to get what we need and move on."

"Please do." Rei nodded with a relieved smile. "Will you let the lords know that I'm staying out of sight?"

"Of course. Leave everything to us." Matthew smiled, appearing on her other side and making Rei jump out of her skin.

"You.. M... don't do that!" She scowled at the thief.

"But it's so much fun!" He grinned. "Come on, I'll go spin a story for the lovely Lyndis while the good brother knocks you flat." He chuckled at the outraged look on their faces as he urged his horse to the front of the group.

"He'll keep your secret, lady Rei. He's flighty, that one, but he means well." Lucius smiled, slightly, and the two of them dropped back to Merlinus' caravan.

* * *

"Do you think that's him?" Eliwood murmured to Hector as he looked around the tavern.

"Big beard, big stomach, big man?" Hector asked, his 'quiet' voice easily audible.

"... yeah." Eliwood replied after a moment.

"No." Hector shook his head. "That's him." He nodded in the direction of a grizzled veteran in the corner.

"How do you know?" Eliwood frowned, slightly.

"Matthew's about to strike." Hector grinned, watching as his thief approached Fargus. Words were exchanged, then the pirate looked up at them, then back at Matthew.

"Where's Lyn gone?" Hector asked after a moment, looking around.

"Probably back outside. She's very attached to that foreign woman. It's inappropriate." Eliwood scowled.

"You mean Rei? They're very good friends, that's all. Can you blame them, after everything they went through last year?" Hector scowled down at his friend. He loved him dearly, but sometimes the smaller man said such stupid things. "Besides, even if there was more going on, it's none of our business."

"I don't like it." Eliwood scowled, but then Fargus and Matthew were approaching and there was no more time for idle chatter.

* * *

"Oh! You're awake!"

The cheerful voice made her wince. Opening her eyes a crack revealed the slatted wooden ceiling of a steerage bunk aboard a ship. It was a familiar sight, though one from long ago – the last time she'd seen the inside of a sailing vessel, it had been on her way to Elibe from her island home.

"Hi, Lyn..." She smiled a little, rolling over to blink at the Sacaean. "We got a ship, then..."

"Yes. A crew, too..." Then the swordswoman frowned at her. "Rei, why did you have Matthew lie to me? I thought you were going to trust me with your problems."

"I..." She bit her lip, then sighed. "I'm sorry, Lyn... it just happened too quickly. I should have told you before... last year, even."

"What is it? What happened, Rei..? Lucius just told me he had to sedate you." Lyn's anger had faded in exchange for genuine concern.

"I know... it's a geas." Rei finally told her, and waited for her response.

"A geas." Lyn frowned. "What kind of a geas?"

"To continue my search, until I find him or proof of his death. It's why I had to leave you last year. I can't stay in the same place for more than three or four days at a time, depending how big it is, and I can't go back to that place within four months. If I do..." She looked away, hunching over her knees.

"I see." Lyn growled, her anger returning. "I see why you didn't tell me, but Rei... this can't stand. We have to get it taken off! It's inhuman." She stood, pacing as far as she could in the small confines. "What do they think you are, some kind of slave? They..."

"Did what they thought was right." Rei told her, quietly. "Don't hate them, Lyn... please. They're my family."

"No!" Lyn turned, glaring at her. "No, they aren't. Family wouldn't treat you like that just because you don't want to marry some arrogant prick. Family wouldn't use magic to torture you for disobeying, Rei!"

"It's not just because of Kojiro..." Rei mumbled into her knees. "It's because of what I am... my stupid, filthy little secret..."

"Rei..." Lyn's expression softened, and she moved to sit on the bunk beside her, taking her hand and holding it gently. "Rei, you can't keep blaming yourself. What can you possible have done to deserve this?"

"I..." Rei looked at her, startled by the touch, but the words stuck in her throat. "I... no..." She looked down. "I'm sorry, Lyn..." Her heart was aching as she forced her words – her confession – down. "I can't tell you yet... I just... I can't tell you. Please, don't hate me..."

"Oh, Rei... you know I could never hate you." Lyn sighed, softly, and hugged her for a moment. "I just can't bear to see you beating yourself up like this. Just tell me when you're ready."

"I will.. I promise. Some day, I'll tell you everything." Rei promised. "When I'm finally brave enough..."

"I'll hold you to that." Lyn smiled. "How do you feel? Ready to get up?"

"I... yeah." She smiled. "Yeah, I am. How long have I been asleep?"

"A few hours." Lyn chuckled. "We're half an hour out of the port now, heading out towards the open sea."

"Is Hector being sick yet?" Rei asked with a small, impish smile.

"Not yet." Lyn laughed, and helped the islander up.

* * *

At fourth bell of the forenoon watch, the next day, Dart laughed to himself as he watched the blue-haired Lord throwing up over the side of the boat again. The poor man had no sea legs at all. Glancing up towards the horizon, he revelled in the feel of wind in his face, before something caught his eye. Squinting, he tried to make it out.

"Captain! Longboat sighted! Looks adrift!" He called over to where Fargus was speaking with the helmsman, Jason.

"A longboat here? Could be a mutineed captain." Fargus mused, scratching his beard. "Alright. Three points to starboard, Helm, lets see who's adrift."

As the ship came around, it heeled slightly until the crew let off the mainsheet to compensate for heading up towards the wind. They weren't on the most efficient point of sail, or the best rig, but Fargus had ordered they try to keep things peaceful for the land-lubbers aboard, much to the amusement of the crew.

"What's happening?" Eliwood asked, ducking out of the captain's ready room under the helmsman's position and looking up at them.

"One of my men sighted a longboat. Shouldn't be anything that small this far out, so we're investigating. Might be a captain put off by his crew or sommat." Fargus told him, then pointed. Eliwood looked, then frowned slightly.

"That's unusual. Doesn't look like there's anyone in it..." He murmured. They were on the boat five minutes later, and hauling the dehydrated occupant on board. Eliwood blinked when he saw, then rushed over.

"Is that... Ninian?!" He yelped in surprise, and at his voice she let out a soft groan, opening her eyes to look at him. Smiling, she relaxed and drifted off into a proper sleep.

"Sir! Two schooners on the horizon, no flags up!" The call came down from the crow's nest a moment later.

"No idiot would attack the Davros." Fargus scowled. "You know that girl?"

"Yes, she's Ninian... one of Lyn's travelling companions. I don't know her story, but I know she's involved in some bad business, and not by choice. Those ships might be out looking for her."

"I see." Fargus thought about it for a moment. "I reckon a couple of rogues like that won't have anything pleasant in mind for the lass. Whaddya say we show these mates what _real_ pirates are made of?" He grinned, wolfishly, and went to gather the crew without giving Eliwood or Hector a chance to respond.

"He's even more bloodthirsty than me.." Hector groaned, before turning back to spit bile into the water below.


	25. Pirate Ship

Chapter 17 – Pirate Ship

**Disclaimer:** Nothing recognisable belongs to the author. It all belongs to Nintendo and Intelligent Systems. Some details may have been changed, but… on the whole, it's theirs. This is to be reproduced only with the author's permission, and may not be used for profit. If it is reproduced, this warning must be at the beginning of each document.

"Down there. That has to be their leader." Rei told Florina, pointing down towards the helm at the stern of one of the enemy ships – she was now convinced that they were Black Fang. They had split their forces as soon as they had seen the Kanhi girl aboard the Davros, half going after the injured Ninian, spirited away below decks for doctoring, the other half focussing their assault on Rei until Florina had taken her above the battlefield and out of range.

The occasional spell hurtled past them regardless, but Florina's dwindling supply of javelins were put to good use discouraging any archers or mages from poking their heads above decks. The enemy commander had been one of them, a dark-magic wielding Shaman who was only just showing his face.

"I see him." Florina replied. "Should we take him out?"

"In one strike out of the sun." Rei confirmed. "He's probably their strongest spell caster. Don't let him see you coming."

"With how much they hate you?" The pegasus knight gave her a little grin over her shoulder. "I won't even register. Maybe I should just drop you on him?"

"Very funny." Rei gave the back of her head a little glare, then squeaked as Huey banked into the dive, swooping down upon the dark mage, into his blind-spot. Florina set her lance under her shoulder, crouching low against her mount's back. Rei leaned down as well, just holding herself off the smaller girls' back as the deck span up to meet them.

The shaman looked up at the last moment, taking the iron tip of Florina's weapon between the eyes. She was forced to release the lance on the downbeat of Huey's great wings lest it be torn from her hand, leaving the shaman-commander's body to fall as they skimmed the deck away from him, before dipping over the gunwale to climb again, avoiding the angles covered by the re-emerging Fang archers.

The second ship broke off as her skipper decided to cut his losses and run. A cheer went up from the Davros as Erk's anima magic finished regrowing the hull where the Fang ships' rams had stove her in. The other Fang ship was already falling away, her boarding lines cut and her rigging aflame courtesy of Fargus' pirates and their firebombs.

Even as Florina brought them around to land aboard the Davros, the tar caulking on the assassins' ship caught, lines of fire spreading across her deck before expanding to cover the rest of the ship.

"She'll burn to the waterline now." Florina commented as they came to rest. "Ships burn like nothing else, once you get them going."

"Really?" Rei asked, dismounting. "I never figured you to be one to know sailing, I have to admit."

"Ilia has one of the largest trade fleets in the whole of Elibe," Florina replied, almost impishly. "we have to trade for what we can because of the difficulty growing anything. It's why so many of us are mercenaries."

"I guess that makes sense." Rei nodded.

"Florina, Rei!" Lyn called, jogging up to them. "You're alright?" She asked, checking them over.

"Not a scratch on either of us," The tactician smiled back.

"How's Ninian?" Florina asked, concerned.

"She'll be fine." Lyn replied. "Serra had a look at her before joining the fight. She's got mild exposure sickness, but that's all. No sign of a cold or anything more life-threatening."

"Thank Barigan," Florina sighed, "do you think this means they caught them?" She worried.

"It seems likely," Rei nodded, "they probably still have Nils, or he'd be here."

"Good thing we're going after them, then." Lyn gave Florina a quick hug. "We'll rescue Nils and find Lord Elbert at the same time."

"Alright." Florina nodded, decisively. "We'll get them back. No-one messes with Lyndis Legion!" The diminutive knight pounded her fist into her hand, making her taller companions grin.

"Right." Rei nodded, sagely. "We'll get your boyfriend back."

"Rei!" Florina glowered at her indignantly, making Lyn laugh aloud at the scene.

"Right, come on you land-lovers, get that pegasus stowed!" Dart, the bald pirate swabbie Fargus had assigned as their guide told them, coming over. "Stop clutterin' up my deck."

"Aye-aye." Lyn grinned back at him in high spirits as Florina obeyed, leading Huey below to stable him with the horses.

"Think yer funny, do ya, wench?" Dart smirked, getting up in Lyn's face. "Ya wanna go Pirate, ya need more'n a pretty sword."

"I have no wish to join you," Lyn scowled back, reminded where she was, "or do anything else." She added coldly at his mocking, lustful leer.

"Maybe yer pretty friend then? I seem ta recall the Captain offerin' 'er a go iffen she was still all tight-wound." The pirate added, lustily, then guffawed as Lyn fingered her sword. "Oh! Think ya can go a round with ol' Dart, do ya, pretty lady?

"Yes." Lyn was almost growling. "I think I can. You're just another bandit!" She stepped towards him.

"Lyn, don't..." Rei put her hand on her arm, making her pause. "He's trying to provoke you."

"It's working." The half-sacaean replied, shaking her off. "I've had enough of them looking down on us because we're women, because you and Florina are she'chorne, because-"

"Enough talk, pretty lady." Dark smirked, unshipping his axes. The gathering crew and Pheraean troops backed away to form a circle. Matthew began moving among the crew and soldiers, taking bets.

"Be careful, Lyn..." Rei warned, backing out of the way as Lyn slid into her Iai stance.

Lyn took in the uneven deck, the coils of rope and the raised vent-hatches. She saw Dart step back, setting himself for a charge. Fargus came out onto the sterncastle to watch, folding him arms impassively across his chest. The wind blew in from the east, tossing her bangs in front of her face and filling the square sails with a snap.

Everything snapped into focus, returning to normal speed as Dart came in swinging. She ducked under his first swing, bringing Mani-katti's hilt up into his sternum in a partial draw, knocking him back. She returned the blade to the sheath with a clack, then slid it free again to strike into the opened-out space between them. The tip of the blade whistled past Dart's chest, cutting only air as he turned his stumble into an evasion, finding his footing before lunging back in with a downward chop from his off-hand.

Lyn sidestepped the blow, misreading the feint and stepping into an axe-handle strike from his main weapon. The blow caught her in the side, above her flank and sending her reeling back. Lyn collapsed onto one knee as she fought for breath, supporting herself on Mani-katti, point resting on the deck. Her ribs were bruised, probably cracked, and every breath hurt even as her body demanded more air.

She forced herself up as Dart showed off for the crowd, lifting his axes over his head and cat-calling.

"I'm not... done yet..." She growled, setting her feet. She took her sword in a two-handed grip before her, a defensive stance. She couldn't afford to over-reach herself.

Dart turned back, before launching another strike. He led with his main hand this time, sweeping in horizontally in an attempt to batter his way past her guard. Lyn stepped back, then struck at his axe with the main part of her blade, twisting it as she did to send the axe spinning away to clatter to the deck at Hector's feet.

The pirate just grinned at her, fiercely. The sudden loss of advantage didn't seem to worry him at all as he grabbed at her arm with his now free hand.

Lyn avoided the grapple, going for another hilt-strike at Dart's chin. The pirate parried with his remaining axe-haft, then heaved her back again. Wrong-footed, she was pushed back across the deck by a series of desperately parried swings until she stumbled over a coiled sheet. She fell back in front of horrified gazes as Dart's next blow knocked her down.

The pirate stepped over her, planting one foot either side of her hips as his breathing returned to normal. He looked down at her with a grin, before offering her a hand.

"Ye've got a long way to go, Lyn," he told her, resting his remaining axe on his shoulder, "but that was the best fight I've had in ages. You aint so bad."

She just stared up at him, confused.

"Come on, girl. Yer alright. Just like the Captain said, ye'r a bit high-strung is all." He grinned down at her.

"I couldn't even touch you." Lyn replied, finally accepting his hand up uncertainly. He hauled her to her feet easily, then shook his head with a chuckle.

"I got bruises. That sword o'yours is wicked. Ya didn't cut me, but the near misses were like bein' punched by a jealous fishwife." The pirate grinned. "Relax, pretty lady. We've got blue sky, bluer sea, and a favourable wind. Life's good."

"If you say so..." She eyed him, warily.

"Ah, fine." He clapped her on the back. "Be off with ya. Get those ribs seen to." He turned away from the gasping swordswoman, looking somehow disappointed.

Rei met Lyn part way, putting her arm around her waist to help support her friend and pulling her arm over her shoulders as they made their way towards Serra's commandeered surgery-cabin.

"Sorry." Lyn mumbled. "I screwed up..."

"I forgive you," Rei replied softly. "I was wrong too. Thank you for trying... I think he respects you a little more now. He won't be so offensive."

"I didn't do it for his respect." Lyn told her. "I just wanted to-" She stopped as Rei put a finger to her lips. It tickled.

"Sh. I know what you were trying to do. Thank you, Lyn." She smiled up at her, softly.

"Alright." Lyn sighed, then regretted it with a wince. Rei helped her sit down with her back against the bulkhead just inside Serra's temporary surgery. The ink-haired Elimane was busy washing instruments in boiling water next to where Florina sat over the sleeping Ninian, but Priscilla had followed them down. She knelt beside them to examine Lyn's ribs, helping her remove her top with efficient, if gentle, insistence.

"So," Rei started, averting her eyes. "What does it mean? That word you used..."

"Um, which one?" Lyn asked, a little too innocently. She hissed softly as Priscilla bound her ribs while pretending to ignore their conversation, then cast a soft spell to accelerate the healing.

"She'chorne." Rei repeated it, carefully. She didn't notice Florina's sudden interest, or Serra leaning in less subtly to eavesdrop.

"Oh. It's... about your... 'condition'." Lyn told her, apprehensively.

"Who told you?" Rei asked, sitting back on her heels suddenly.

"No-one did. I finally figured it out this morning. You were almost in tears because you were lying to me... even friends don't get that cut up." She replied, then looked down at her bound chest. "I'm sorry. I know you didn't want me to know."

"I was afraid." Rei admitted. "I thought- no. I should have trusted you more. I just..." She stared at her hands as she realised she was wringing them together, forcing herself to stop.

"You thought I would hate you, like the islanders did." Lyn finished for her, softly. "It's alright. You're allowed to be afraid. You've only had people you can trust for the last year or so. That's why Sain refused to tell me, why Florina never brought it up... I know they both knew since last year." She paused as Priscilla finished up, helping her put her top back on before stepping back. "You can trust us, Rei, even though I know its hard. We are she'enedra, remember? You, Florina and I... we're all that's left of the Lorca."

"It's... not just that." Rei admitted, uietly. "Last year, when I was saying good-bye... I didn't mean to, but-"

"You were going to kiss me, weren't you?" Lyn asked, quietly.

"Yes," Rei sighed, glancing up at her to try and see her reaction before losing her nerve and looking away. "I-I'm sorry. I know you aren't..."

"Who says I'm not?" The barbarian asked, catching her chin and making her look back.

"You're..? But..." Rei started, stammering.

"I'm sorry," Lyn replied, softly. "The truth is I just don't know. I've never thought about it seriously. Florina is like a little sister to me, and she's the only one I might have... well."

"We're close." Florina murmured, without getting up. "But our relationship isn't like that. Thankfully." She smiled at them, realising they'd forgotten she was there. "I had a crush when I was twelve." She admitted.

"You never told me." Lyn sounded surprised.

"Lyn, I was _twelve_." The pegasus knight smiled, sheepishly. "I had no idea what you'd think. Probably that I was just some silly little girl... which I was."

"Lyn?" Rei asked, hesitantly, when they stopped. She waited for the teal-haired girl to look back at her. "Do you... think I'm attractive? Do you... _want_ to kiss me?"

Lyn hesitated, before nodding wordlessly, pink tingeing her cheeks in an uncommon display of shyness.

"Then... may I kiss you?" Rei pressed on, her mouth going try as the two healers and one knight errant watched. Serra looked confused, while Priscilla appeared to be having some kind of revelation and Florina just watched with a small smile.

Lyn nodded again, shyly. Now that the moment had come, Rei's hesitation seemed to melt away. She leaned forward, kneeling up until she could reach to put her arms loosely around Lyn's neck, before brushing her lips gently against the taller girl's.

When Lyn didn't push her away, she moulded her body against her, careful of the sacaean's ribs. She pressed her lips against Lyn's. The teal-haired girl's lips pressed back, a soft, almost insistent warmth against her. Lyn's arms went around Rei' shoulders slowly, pulling her in as her lips parted invitingly, her breathing shallow.

The two girls broke apart gently after a few moments, aqua eyes gazing into black.

"Wow." Lyn whispered, making Rei giggle softly in agreement. "Is it..?"

"I don't know." The kanhi girl admitted, just as softly. "That was... my first real kiss too. I- I don't count Kojiro."

"Rei," Florina's voice broke the moment, cutting through them like an Ilian sea breeze despite the smile in her eyes. "That's my sister you're corrupting. If you make her regret it, you'd better look to the skies."

"Well, I think it's disgraceful." Serra scowled, apparently coming to a decision. Her face was unreadable as she continued, "I won't have any.. canoodling in my surgery. If Priss has finished tending your ribs, take your... familiarity elsewhere." It was impossible to tell if the Elimane was annoyed by their choice of location, their choice of partners... or even if she was really annoyed at all.

"I will." Rei promised Florina with a smile, before drawing Lyn to her feet by their interlaced fingers.

"Remember," Priscilla interrupted. "Those ribs need a night or so to heal, so no... heavy exertion until then." She warned them with a wink.

"Thanks." Lyn smiled at the redhead. "I'll bear that in mind." She nodded to the others before leading Rei from the cabin and back to their steerage berth. She sat on the edge of the low bunk, drawing the kanhi girl down to sit next to her.

"So..." She started with a small smile. "The kanhi word... is there one?"

"Josei dousei aisharin." Rei replied with a little shrug. "It's an insult, but no-one uses it unless they're really laying into someone."

"Oh, well." Lyn smiled. "It doesn't really matter. Will you favour me with another kiss, Lady Rei?"

"Any time... Lady Lyn." Rei smiled back. "Aishiteru."

"Aishiteru?" Lyn breathed as she leaned in.

"I'll tell you later," Rei murmured, kissing her gently.

A/N: A Beginner's Guide to Shin'a'in, continued:

She'chorne - "One whose love is like oneself", homosexual.


End file.
